Patchwork Family
by sayochama
Summary: COMPLETE Kaoru adds another stray (Soujirou) to her collection. Can she convince the rest of her family that it's a good idea? Post Revenge, slightly AU, OOC.
1. A Hardheaded Woman

**Patchwork Family** Chapter One – "A Hard-headed Woman"

**Author:** sayochama

**Rating:** PG13 (for Sano's potty mouth)

**Disclaimer:** Once upon a time, there was a poor college girl in the middle of finals who had a story inside her head. So she wrote it down. However, the characters she used did not belong to her, no matter how hard she wished that they were. Instead, the belonged to Watsuki Nobuhiro, Sony, and a bunch of other really big companies that would sue her out of house and doujinshi if they believed she was making a profit from this story. Which she most definitely is not. So please don't sue her. She loves her doujinshi dearly.

**Setting**: After Revenge, but slightly AU because Sano's still around. Characters are OOC. ^_^;

Thoughts are in _italics._

=====================================

_It was going to be one of those days._ Kamiya Kaoru could feel it in her bones. Sanosuke had appeared at the Dojo earlier that morning to mooch some breakfast and had dragged Kenshin away afterwards saying something about a job. She hadn't wanted Kenshin to go, but he had smiled and told her that all he needed was his reputation. Yahiko had left shortly after morning classes to visit some of his police friends. Lonely, Kaoru had closed up the dojo and went to the Akebeko hoping to take her mind off things for a little while. Tae had immediately set her to work, sending her out to pick up some extra necessities from the market. _"Everything would be fine," he had said_. She made a rude noise in the back of her throat, causing her companion a start and a nervous glance up at her.

"Are you alright, Kaoru-san?"

A bit startled herself by the sudden interruption of her thoughts, Kaoru managed what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "I'm fine, Tsubame-chan. I just had something stuck in my throat." _The last time Kenshin had said that, he had come home half-dead and bleeding everywhere… _

"Oh… Well, do you need a drink of water or something? I know the vegetable seller up the street…" Tsubame looked faintly worried.

Kaoru shook her head. "No, no, I'm fine. Really. We should head back to the Akebeko to get these things to Tae-san before the lunch crowd gets too terrible." She tried her best "I'm-so-totally-NOT-worried-about-baka-Kenshin" smile. It seemed to work because Tsubame quit sneaking sidelong glances up at her, instead seeming to concentrate on her own daydreams. Kaoru smiled sincerely for the first time that day, thinking that those daydreams probably involved Tsubame and a certain bratty, loudmouth, "Tokyo samurai."

So it came to pass that neither Kaoru nor Tsubame was paying much attention to their surroundings and wandered into a rougher section of town that was a little farther from the Akabeko than they intended.

"Well, well, what do we have here? A couple of little girls away from their daddy…?"

Kaoru stiffened slightly at the rough voice and whirled around to face it. Behind the two girls was a group of five men, dirty and dressed in rags. They were all bigger than she was, and two had weapons of some sort. Each had a look on his face that clearly told her that what they intended was going to be painful for her.

_Shit_. _I'm outnumbered. What did daddy always say…? "Bigger and stronger can be beaten with skill and deviousness." _She glared at them. "Obviously you're just a group of cowards, if you want to challenge two unarmed women."

"Who're you callin' a coward, bitch?" This came from Goon #2.

"Why, everyone of course. Didn't I say 'group?'"

"Why you—" Goon #2 tried to rush her, but the leader threw an arm in the way stopping him.

"Brave words for such a little thing. Why don't you come have fun with us? I promise we won't hurt you." The leader smirked. "Much." 

Kaoru let her mouth widen in a parody of a smile. Pitching her voice so that only Tsubame could hear, she whispered, "I'm going to create a distraction. As soon as they have their attention on me, run and get help." Tsubame made a strangled sound of agreement and began inching towards the wall. At least she had experience running in a kimono, Tsubame thought wildly.

Her eyes never leaving the men in front of her, Kaoru set down her groceries, though she still lightly held a long daikon radish, and redistributed her weight on her feet in case she had to move quickly. _Damn kimono. It's always so hard to fight in this thing._

"I'm afraid I'm busy today. Perhaps you would let my friend and I go?" _Gotta stay calm. Deviousness, remember Kaoru? Deviousness and skill._

"Not a chance, you cocky bitch."

"What a shame." And then she moved. She swung the daikon at the man closest to her, catching him in the nose and stunning him. "RUN TSUBAME-CHAN!" So she did. 

++++++++++

Seta Soujirou stretched in the mid-morning sun outside of a small dango shop. He had just finished his brunch, and was looking forward to exploring Tokyo a little before moving on. Soujirou had spent the last year and handful of months working his way around Japan, heading west from Kyoto, then north along the Sea of Japan coast to Hokkaido, and finally south again along the eastern side of the island. He rarely stayed in one place for more than a day or two. The constant movement suited him. He still hadn't found all of his answers yet, but hadn't Himura-san spent ten years on the road? _Wait... didn't Himura-san live in Tokyo?_

Soujirou was so involved in following that thought that he never knew what hit him.

Tsubame, old experience at running in a kimono coming back to her with amazing speed, barreled into him knocking them both down in the process.

"Oh my god! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to run into you like that. Are you okay?" Tsubame anxiously babbled as she tried to figure out if she hurt him or not.

Soujirou smiled pleasantly at the babbling little girl who was currently sitting on his chest. "I'm fine, though if you could please---"

"You have a sword! Oh thank goodness! You have to come help me!" She pointed in the direction she came from. "My friend, we were cornered by a group of ruffians, and she told me to run, and she's back there all by herself, and there were so many of them, and Kaoru-san was unarmed and everything, please you have to help her!" In the process of telling her story, Tsubame had gotten up and, with amazing strength for a little girl her size, pulled Soujirou up too, trying to get him to go help Kaoru.

As the information Soujirou's mind tried to process sunk in, he decided what he must do. He put a stilling hand on Tsubame's head and smiled at her, causing her to blush and quit speaking abruptly. "I'll go help your friend. You should go find the police."

"Oh thank you!" Soujirou nodded, and suddenly he was gone.

"Wow. He's just like Kenshin-san…" Then realizing that she was staring down the road at nothing, Tsubame turned away and ran to the nearest police box.

+++++++++

_Definitely one of those days._ Kaoru leaned against the wall and glared at her remaining assailants. _Two down, three to go. Catalogue of injuries: a backhanded slap to my right cheek, my ribs hurt, my left shoulder hurts, and I'm pretty sure that I twisted my right ankle. Lovely._ The daikon, broken and dirty, hung limply from her left hand.

"So, you gonna give up yet?" the leader smirked, casually leaning his club against his soldier. Inside he was a mass of burning anger and hatred. A little girl had practically beaten his entire gang, scoring hits on all of them.

Kaoru spat.

"Then you can die, you little bitch!" He brought the club up and was in mid-swing when Kaoru felt someone pick her up and move her out of the way. The club came crashing down on the spot where Kaoru had been standing, a very confused goon and henchmen crowding around the wall, as they realized nothing had connected.

Kaoru looked up at her savior as he set her down against a wall several feet away from the thugs. At first she had thought was Kenshin, but when she got a good look at him she realized that she had never seen this man before in her life. _He's so fast though. As fast as Kenshin, I bet._

"You must be Kaoru-san." She nodded, and was rewarded with a warm smile. "Your little friend went to find the police. I'll take of this problem now, though, if you would be so kind as to wait a few moments." She stared at him. _He talks almost as politely as Kenshin does. And here I thought chivalry was dead. _"I'm sorry, is something wrong?" She shook her head. "Well, then, I'll go attend to the problem."

"Okay."

++++++++ 

When Tsubame came back accompanied by several police officers, several of which were students at the Dojo, they were greeted with the sight of all five thugs neatly tied up and lined against the wall. She looked frantically around for a few minutes before catching sight of Kaoru being attended to by the stranger she had met earlier. _He has a nice smile._

_++++++_

"Wow, you sure beat them quickly."

Her savior laughed nervously and mumbled something about having a lot of experience.

"What's your name?"

He started a bit. "Seta Soujirou." Normally he didn't tell people his full name, but there was something about the girl that almost demanded that he confide everything in her. She was beautiful, even with half of her face beginning to turn an interesting shade of purple from the blow she got.

Her eyes widened a bit. It was a name she knew well from her time in Kyoto. From Kamatari's self-pity filled rants after the fight of the Aoiya finished, she had a good idea of his history and abilities. _Soujirou the Tenken. Shishio Makoto's right hand man, possessor of super god speed and no conscience, but during the fight with Kenshin he broke down and released his emotions. Probably abused before that._

Soujirou stared down at the girl as she gave the little start of recognition. Maybe telling her wasn't such a good idea.

"Kamiya-sensei! What happened?" They both turned their heads to look at the group of policemen that had arrived. Soujirou decided that that would be a perfect moment to take his leave, but he felt her hand snake out and catch his arm. He turned to look back at her. _How had she known?_

Kaoru put on her best "I'm-the-shihandai-of-my-own-kendo-school-so-don't-argue" face and said softly, "Please wait." Soujirou relaxed marginally. Her grip on his arm hadn't lessened. "I'm Kamiya Kaoru. Do you have a place to stay tonight?" That startled him. He hastily tried to resurrect a smile.

"Uh… no… I just got into town, you see and.."

"Please come stay at my dojo tonight."

"What?" _This girl was weird._

"Please come stay at my dojo tonight. It's the least I can do to properly thank you."

"Oh, no, I don't need any thanks. I'm just a wanderer. It was the least I could do to help you…"

Her eyes, an unusual shade of blue, darkened. "Please. Even if you don't want to accept my thanks, I'm sure Kenshin…"

"Kenshin? Himura Kenshin?" She nodded. And for what seemed like the thousandth time that day, he felt his smile slip to be replaced by a look of shock.

"Kenshin would want to thank you for looking after me."

"I can't possibly come with you and oh my goodness, YOU must be the Kaoru-dono he was talking about when we fought. You can't want me to come with you. Are you crazy? I tried to kill him. Several times in fact…" Soujirou knew he was babbling, but he couldn't seem to stop himself. Too much information had been thrown at him in too short an amount of time.

"That's okay. You're not that much different than our other friends in that respect."

"Your other friends tried to kill him too?" His tone suggested that this was beginning to be too much for him to process.

"Yeah. They come and visit us sometimes." Kaoru said it nonchalantly.

And Soujirou's brain couldn't handle the shock anymore. He passed out.

+++++++++ 

Author's Notes: 

1. I normally don't like a lot of Japanese in fanfic as a reader, so I've tried to keep it to a minimum. A lot of times the Japanese is not quite correct, plus it slows people down if they aren't familiar with the language at all. So I've kept the suffixes (dono, chan, san, kun, and sama) , "baka," and a few words here and there if they fit better than an English word.

2. In my head, I find it entirely plausible that Kaoru could have figured out Soujirou's history from assorted comments she heard from Kamatari, Chou, Sanosuke, and Kenshin. Of course Kaoru would be interested in Soujirou, mostly because he would be one of the Juppon Gatana to try and kill and Kenshin, and I bet that she probably could have gotten the majority of the information from Kamatari's rants about how unfair his life was. 

3. After watching the Soujirou/Kenshin fight again, I realized that Kenshin has basically no idea of the details about Soujirou's childhood. I find it amusing that Kaoru would, in this case, know more about something than he did. 

4. Dialogue isn't my thing. Neither are fight scenes. If you feel the need to say something to me, please email me or review. I'd appreciate it.


	2. A SoftHearted Man

**Patchwork Family** Chapter Two– "A Soft-Hearted Man"

**Author:** sayochama

**Rating:** PG13 (for Sano's potty mouth)

**Disclaimer:** Rurouni Kenshin does not belong to me. I am receiving nothing from this story except reviews from nice people. Move along, move along.

Thoughts are in _italics. _

+++++

_How do I end up in situations like this? _Soujirou wondered for what seemed like the hundredth time as he sat on the porch of the Kamiya Dojo.

+++++

After recovering from his brain hiccup out on the streets he had _attempted_ to get away, but it hadn't ended up exactly as he planned. Somehow Kaoru and Tsubame, whose name he learned after she apologized profusely for knocking him down, had a sixth sense about when he was going to try to sneak away, catching his sleeve or asking him a question and generally preventing him from making an escape. He still wasn't quite sure how either girl managed it, but he was pulled along with the police escort back to the Dojo. They were greeted there by, what he considered, one of the scariest females he had ever met in his life. And damn if he hadn't known some scary women in his lifetime.

The woman was tall and beautiful, with long black hair and an erect carriage. Her expression, though, was what made him nervous. _She looked capable of ripping off someone's head with her bare hands and then … _Well, the rest was pretty crude, so he stopped that thought there. Kaoru, though, didn't seem intimidated in the least.

"Hi Megumi-san." She even waved weakly with her good arm. "Nice day for walk, isn't it?"

Megumi's eyebrow twitched. Things weren't looking too good for Kaoru.

"Tsubame-chan and I had a little bit of trouble at the market today…"

"You got your sweet little self in a fight, which you promptly lost."

Kaoru looked outraged. "It wasn't like that at all! I was able to hold out until help came."

"You look like something the cat dragged in." Megumi looked and sounded unimpressed.

"Well, excuse me for getting injured!" Kaoru physically bristled at Megumi's taunts. Definitely not looking good.

"Settle down, Raccoon girl. You boys there, bring her inside so I can get a better look at her." With that, Megumi took control of the situation, pressing every able-bodied person into service.

+++

That had been about an hour ago. Megumi was now trying to get Kaoru to drink some sort of medicine that would put her to sleep for a few hours and help with the pain. Things had deteriorated considerably. Soujirou was glad he had been able to escape to the relative safety of the porch with Tsubame. He was still able to see and hear everything that went on inside, but he wasn't within immediate reach. Tsubame had found a tea tray somewhere and was clutching it to her chest. _Don't little girls usually have dolls or something to do that to…?_

"Where is Ken-san anyway? Shouldn't he be here wringing his hands and getting in my way?"

"Kenshin left with Sanosuke this morning."

"How unlike him. He hasn't left you alone since you got home a few months ago."

"When he left he thought Yahiko was going to be here all day."

"So where did the brat run off to?"

"He went to visit his friends."

And on and on it went. Actually listening to the two of them fight was strangely comforting. He had witnessed enough arguments between Yumi and Kamatari that he half expected blows to be exchanged soon. If it came to that, he wasn't sure who would win. Somehow he thought that Megumi-san was above behavior like that, though.

"Is this normal for them?" he asked Tsubame with a significant glance inside.

Tsubame gave a little start from beside him, raising the tea tray to cover most of her face. "Y-yes, it's very normal."

"Eh… really?" _It really is like Yumi-san and Kamatari-san…_

"It only gets worse when Kenshin-san is involved." Soujirou was spared a response when the decibel level of the two suddenly spiked.

"I told you, Megumi-san, that I wasn't taking anything until Kenshin got home!"

"Ken-san will be upset with you for not taking your medicine like a good little girl!"

"I'd rather he be upset with me than scared or worried because I wasn't awake to welcome him home!"

"It's not like you can avoid it anyway! Ken-san is going to want to know what you were doing in that part of town to start with!"

"I can deal with that later!"

"Why are you being so stubborn!"

"Why are you pushing me!"

"Um… why is it so important the Kamiya-san be awake to greet Himura-san?" Soujirou's voice was loud enough to carry over to the next room. Both girls turned to him, momentarily surprised that he would interrupt their argument. Kaoru was the first to recover.

"I made him a promise, Soujirou." Kaoru visibly calmed when she faced him, the distraction easing her temper.

"Oh." _Well that really explains a lot to me. _He opened his mouth to say something else, but Megumi beat him to it.

"Hnn… so the boy's name is Soujirou, huh? You wouldn't happen to be the Tenken, would you?"

These girls were forever surprising him. "How did you know?"  
  


"Lucky guess. I was the one who patched Ken-san up after his fight with Shishio." Megumi said it in such a matter-of-fact tone that Soujirou could only blink at her.

"But about me…"

"The Rooster Head catalogued his injuries for me."

"Rooster Head?" _Could she mean that man who learned the Futae no Kiwami from Anji? _

"Sanosuke." _Yeah, that was his name._

"Oh." _Real brilliant, Soujirou. Can't you come up with anything else?_ Tsubame giggled at his expression, safe behind the tray.

"That must have been an interesting conversation, Megumi-san."

"Not really." Megumi let out a sigh of exasperation. "Anyway, if you aren't going to cooperate with me Kaoru, then I don't have any more time to waste with you. Tsubame-chan, do you think that Tae can spare you tonight?" Tsubame nodded. "Good. Come with me to pick up your things so you can stay with Kaoru tonight. You," she leveled one perfectly manicured finger at Soujirou, "are going to stay here and make sure that she doesn't aggravate her injuries doing something stupid."

"But how can you trust someone like me to—"

"The raccoon girl trusted you enough to bring you home. That's enough for me. We'll be back in an hour." Megumi efficiently gathered her belongings and Tsubame, and was out the door before he could gather his thoughts effectively.

+++++

Kaoru patted the spot next to her futon and indicated that he should come inside. He carefully left his shoes on the stone step next to the porch and came inside to sit where she had pointed. They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes before Kaoru felt like she had to explain her earlier behavior.

"Megumi-san tends to be bossy when she's upset. That's why we fight so much." _That's not entirely true. She treats me like a stupid child most of the time, and that's why we fight. _

"I noticed."

"She can be very intimidating."_ She doesn't take me seriously._

"You don't seem to think so."

"I'm used to it." _Though… saying she trusts in my judgment of people was nice of her._

"Is she always that scary?"

She giggled. "Oh, Sou-chan, you're so cute."

"Sou-chan?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. That's how Kamatari-san referred to you… I should've asked before I called you that. Is it okay?" Kaoru's tone was apologetic.

"Um… actually, yeah, I think I'd like that." He was rewarded with a return of her smile.

"I'm glad you don't mind."

"It's…nice."

"To have a nickname?"

"Yeah."

"You've never had much of a family before, have you?"

While he was still outwardly smiling pleasantly, his eyes flashed with pain before becoming shuttered. He didn't answer right away.

"I'm sorry, that was really personal and nosy of me. You don't have to answer." 

He shook his head. "No, no, it's okay. It's just weird having someone nosy around. I don't have any experience with it…"

Kaoru reached over and patted his hand. The touch seemed to confuse him a bit. _People don't reach out to you very often, do they? _"You don't have to tell me, you know, unless you really want to. I really shouldn't have asked. It wasn't polite."

"… I really didn't have much of a family, other than Shishio-san and Yumi-san…" he said finally.

"I'm afraid my opinion of them wasn't very good."

He nodded. "I can understand that."

"But Kenshin said something before we left Kyoto…"

Soujirou waited patiently as Kaoru replayed the memory in her head. "He said, 'If circumstances were different, I'm sure we could have been friends.'"

He blinked. "Himura-san really said that?"

"Yeah." She nodded warmly and patted his hand again. _I'll reach out to you, though. So will Kenshin. You just have to let us._

"What do you know about me?" he asked suddenly.

"Enough."_ Enough to know that you were with Shishio ever since you were a child. If that couldn't make someone crazy, I don't know what would. _

"Enough?"

"Yeah." _Enough to know that even though you killed people, the person inside you was crying behind the smile. Kenshin could never have reached you otherwise. _

"And you still want me to stay?" Clearly Soujirou had never met anyone like her before.

"Yes." _We'll reach out to you. You need someone to teach you about what a real family is. _

"You're a weird woman, Kamiya-san."

At that she laughed. "Call me Kaoru. You don't know that much about me, though, do you?" He shook his head.

"We knew where Himura-san lived, of course, but Shishio-san was never interested in him personally. He was only interested in fighting him, in proving that he was better than his 'sempai.' Houji-san was the one who wanted to weaken Himura-san through his friends. He was the one who planned the attack on the Aoiya while Himura-san was away."

"Houji-san…? Is he the one who committed suicide in jail?"

"Yes. Anji and I pulled him out of the building the day Himura-san fought us, when it was burning…"

"The day you started your journey?"

He nodded. _I wonder if he'll tell me what he's learned along the way. I hope Kenshin gets back soon. _He didn't, but the companionable silence stretched on until Tsubame and Megumi got back from their errand.

+++++++

_Stupid Sanosuke. Stupid ankle. Stupid shoulder. Stupid Megumi-san. Stupid body. Stupid, stupid, stupid. _Kaoru cursed softly as she tried to get out of her futon. Thankfully her shoulder had only been bruised where she had hit the wall, but moving it caused pain to shoot down her arm and radiate into her back. Her ribs had been taped up, Megumi leaving strict orders not to do any practicing for at least the next two weeks. With her ankle sprained, Kaoru figured it would take at least that long before she could walk around normally. Everything hurt. _I must look like Shishio, covered in bandages like I am now. _She grimaced, which only served to remind her about the lovely bruise that was spreading on the right side of her face. _I feel like I got pummeled by an Oni. _

Tsubame and Soujirou had finally convinced her to lie down after dinner, courtesy of the Akebeko, after she had extracted a promise from them to come get her when Kenshin got home. Yahiko had left a message with Tae saying that he would be staying over at the police dorm for some extra practice and that he would be home the following morning, so she didn't need to worry about him. Even without Megumi's special medicine, Kaoru had soon fallen asleep. It had been early evening when she had been helped back to her room. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she crawled to the shoji and slid it open a crack. _Stupid Kenshin, why couldn't you come home at a reasonable hour? _It felt like it was close to midnight. She managed to slide the shoji open enough for her to get by. _Just out to the porch step, then I'll rest. Just to the porch step. _

"My, Kamiya-san, you shouldn't be moving around like that. Takani-sensei will scold you if she found out that you had aggravated your injuries." Kaoru turned her head to look up at the voice. _Soujirou. _This variation of his smile held a hint of worry. _Probably worried about what Megumi would do to **him** if she found out._

"I've been scolded by Megumi-san plenty of times before. Why are you still up, anyway? And didn't I tell you to call me Kaoru?" The pain was making her irritable, and Kenshin's continued absence was beginning to worry her. _Stupid Kenshin. _

"Kaoru-san, then. Tsubame-san and I promised to get you when Himura-san returned. She fell asleep about an hour ago, but..."

"You were going to keep your promise."

"Yeah." Soujirou's smile was genuine this time, reaching his eyes and making him look his true age.

"Well, then, I'm awake now, so why don't you help me out onto the porch and we'll wait together, okay? It'll save you a trip." Soujirou complied, handling her as gently as possible as he helped her make herself comfortable next to a beam. He sat down a few feet away and faced the courtyard, in a position similar to the one he had been in that afternoon. The night was cloudy, but there was a pleasant breeze and the quiet was nice.

_I wonder what kind of job it is that would keep him out this long… _"Kaoru-san."

"Hmm?"

"What kind of promise did you make to Himura-san? You didn't say earlier."

"I didn't?" Kaoru gazed up at the moon, glad for the clouds. "I promised Kenshin that I would always be here to say, 'Welcome home,' if he ever had to leave, that I would wait for him and smile when he returned." _If I stay in the shadows, maybe Kenshin won't notice all the bandages. _For once she was happy to be wearing a kimono, even if it was her loose sleeping yukata.

"Yumi-san…" Soujirou's voice was quiet, his profile introspective. "Yumi-san had a similar promise."

"Really?" she murmured. _I guess Kenshin was right when he said that if circumstances had been different… _

Soujirou didn't seem to hear her, though, and continued speaking in his soft, polite way. "Shishio-san would have to leave her behind sometimes and she would get so angry. She'd constantly check her watch and pick fights with Kamatari-san… I never understood how she was able to make Shishio-san the center of her life.

People are selfish. But Yumi-san… she didn't just think about herself. She had room in heart for Shishio-san, more than she had for herself, and sometimes it seemed like she even had room for me… Maybe that's why you remind me of her."

"Because I think of you?" _Okay, this is a bit unexpected._

"Well…" he seemed to struggle to find the right words. "You share it with Himura-san, too. You look like you have enough room in your heart for everyone. Even if that person happens to be a stranger or an old enemy, there is still room."

"Does that confuse you?"

He laughed. "A little," he admitted.

"Well, I can't really explain it to you. But, if you live here long enough, then maybe you'll begin to understand." The sound of the gate opening and closing drifted through the air, accompanied by the slight sound of scuffling feet. _He's home._ She turned to look at Soujirou. "Kenshin's back."

"Are you worried?" If there was a double meaning to the question, Kaoru chose to ignore it.

"Not at all." The footsteps grew closer, and a few moments later Kenshin appeared around the corner of the house. A cloud passed in front of the moon, momentarily blocking the light. Kenshin's posture said that he was tired, but he stiffened when he realized that Kaoru wasn't alone on the porch. 

"Welcome home, Kenshin." Kaoru's voice was filled with genuine happiness and cheer, but she was trying to quickly think of a way to keep Kenshin and Soujirou from coming to blows. _What would keep Kenshin's attention off fighting...? _

"I'm back, Kaoru-dono," his voice was soft as he took a few more steps forward. "Who are you with?" _Please, Mr. Cloud, stay where you are for just a little longer…though, Kenshin probably knows already…_

"A new friend I met today at the market." She deliberately stood, using the beam to support herself as pain shot up from her protesting ankle. "He was kind enough to assist me and Tsubame-chan when we had some trouble…" She took a few shuffling steps forward and bit back a cry of pain when too much weight was put on the wrong foot. Kenshin heard her though, and was immediately by her side supporting her. _Gotcha._ Kaoru grabbed his gi and his hair as she steadied herself using Kenshin as a crutch.Soujirou wisely kept quiet from his seat on the porch. "I invited him to stay the night in thanks. He also wanted to meet with you again…" She looked up at him just as the last of the cloud passed from in front of the moon, bathing the courtyard with light again.

Kenshin sucked in his breath as he took in her bruised face, squeezing her side and causing her to wince in pain. "What happened?" he demanded, his voice roughening dangerously. He turned his attention to the figure on the porch, eyes glowing faintly amber as he recognized the young man sitting there. "Seta Soujirou." _Well, hell. At least he won't do anything too reckless with me holding onto him. _Soujirou cautiously stood, holding up his hands to show he was unarmed. Kaoru pulled Kenshin's hair a little, tightening her grip on him.

"I was passing through the Market, as Kaoru-san said, when a little girl knocked me down and said that her friend was in danger. I went to see what the trouble was, and found a girl fighting a group of five men unarmed except for a daikon." He laughed weakly, reflecting on how ridiculous _that_ sounded. "Two of them were already unconscious when I got there, so I made sure the young lady was out of the way and took care of the rest. Before I knew it, I was back here having tea with that same little girl who knocked me down, and an offer of a free room tonight from the lady I saved." He absently scratched the back of his head, his body language showing how perplexed he was by the behavior of the girls. "I can leave though, if my presence bothers you of course."

"What he says is true, Kaoru-dono?" It was rare for Kenshin to direct such an intense look at her, but Kaoru didn't falter.

"Absolutely." Her voice held a conviction that he only heard on the occasions that something _really_ mattered to her. Like when she told him she didn't care about his past, for instance. It was the one voice he couldn't deny. Kenshin relaxed, though Kaoru's grip on him did not.

"Then I owe you my thanks, Soujirou. You protected someone that is very important to me, and for that I can never repay you." He bowed as much as he was able, which caused Soujirou to breathe a sigh of relief.

"No, no, think nothing of it. I was only doing what was right." _Only doing what you taught me to do, he means. _"The strong protect the weak. I've learned that."

"I'm glad." _Is he blushing from the praise? Mou! It's too dark, I can't see. "_ It's late, perhaps we can continue this discussion over breakfast?"

"It's alright for me to stay?" _Clearly flabbergasted. _

"You may stay as long as you wish, right Kaoru-dono?" Kaoru changed her grip to hug Kenshin, and nodded enthusiastically.

"Of course. The more the merrier, in this house."

"Well, then. I will impose on your kindness for a little while longer."

"Good night, Sou-chan."

+++

Author's Notes:

I apologize to all those Megumi fans out there that may feel like I've mischaracterized her or something…. I find her to be intimidating to write (and just plain intimidating…), so any problems with her character are purely my own. Soujirou is still sort of experiencing shock at being managed by Tsubame, Kaoru, and Megumi, which is why he's acting so docile. I'd like to think that he would also be naturally curious about Kaoru, why she was so special to Kenshin and all that, so that would be extra incentive to stick around for a while (and tell her things, can't forget that). _Oni_ are Japanese ogres. They are large and stupid, with a penchant for violence and the defilement of fair maidens. Kenshin is having an identity crisis right now. I blame this on the variety of fics I've been reading lately. ::hands Kenshin some prozac:: C'mon and cheer up already, honey! O.o; Dang, this chapter was long! Thank you to the many kind reviews for the first chapter. I expected to get about three, so anything more than that just made me extra happy. Arigatou! Though, now I feel like there are all these…expectations… for the story… hrm… O.o; I hope I can meet them! See you next chapter! 


	3. Suspicious Minds

**Patchwork Family** Chapter Three– "Suspicious Minds"

**Author:** sayochama

**Rating:** PG13 (for Sano's potty mouth)

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing, including Rurouni Kenshin.

Thoughts are in _italics. _**Mild Revenge Spoliers!**

+++

Mornings were always Kenshin's favorite time of the day. The wee hours of the morning before the sun rose until Kaoru and Yahiko began to stir in search of breakfast were his own, a peaceful time in an otherwise busy dojo. Not that he minded the noise or the busy comings and goings of his odd, cobbled together family. On the contrary, those were the things he loved best about living in the dojo. Well, those and a certain kind-hearted, blue-eyed kenjutsu instructor.

As he started breakfast, he allowed his thoughts to return to the previous night. For once, the work that Sano had found actually turned out to be legal. Unfortunately, it had also required him to be away from the dojo, and Kaoru, for most of the day, something that he had not done ever since they had returned from that last fight with Enishi. He hated to leave her by herself, an almost irrational terror taking over when he even contemplated the idea. The last time they had been separated something horrible had happened, which he vowed she would never know about, and he had spent the first few months during his recovery attached to her side like a shadow.

But he had finally felt ready and left for a little while yesterday. Even though he had received a sizable amount for his services, he did not think it was worth the price of Kaoru's pain. _I should have been there. _Which brought him to the other subject that was bothering him. Seta Soujirou. Kaoru had sworn that the story Soujirou had told was true, and Kaoru never lied to him. She might bend the truth occasionally about unimportant things, but when it came to important things she was always absolutely truthful.

He hadn't lied the night before either when he told Soujirou that he could never repay him for protecting Kaoru. After escorting her back to her room, Kaoru had said something about "reaching out" to Soujirou.

_"He doesn't know what a real family is like. You started him on his path, and he's a different person now. It's okay to reach out to him. It's okay to help him find some answers now." _That was his Kaoru, always willing to reach out and touch other people with her light. In this case, he totally agreed with her. _I had help finding my answers along the way. _It was a chance to pass on some of his so-called wisdom onto someone who could really understand what it was like to walk the road alone. It was a small deed that would do little to lessen his debt, but would give him some peace of mind.

_"If it's alright with you, I'd like to offer Soujirou the same thing I offered you two years ago…" _A chance for a fresh start. A chance to really interact with the people he built and protected Meiji for. _A chance to find peace within myself._ Kenshin sincerely hoped Soujirou would accept. Not only would it make Kaoru happy, but it could be part of his atonement as well.

"Himura-san…?"

"Aa, Soujirou, good morning." Kenshin made sure his "Rurouni smile" was firmly in place before he faced the intruder in his domain. _Another early riser, huh?_

Soujirou's pleasant expression didn't falter, though he did blink –twice-- in surprise to see the famous Hitokiri Battousai dressed in an apron and bent over a pot of miso soup. "Good morning. Do you need any help?"

Kenshin surveyed the small, immaculate kitchen. The rice was happily bubbling in the pot, and his miso soup was coming along nicely. He had cleaned the fish he was planning on grilling before he started the soup, so the only thing that was left was to chop some pickled vegetables. He pulled out the jars that held his latest pickling efforts, daikon and cucumber, and set them down on some open counter space. With a friendly smile he beckoned Soujirou inside. "Why don't you start slicing these up? I'll get some bowls down for you." _I'm willing to hand you a knife and stand three feet away without worrying about what you'll do with it. _

He came inside, his smile betraying faint bewilderment. _Are you surprised at how easily I am willing to trust you?_ Kenshin could feel him stealing glances up at him as he efficiently chopped the vegetables into bite-sized pieces. They worked in silence for several minutes, Soujirou not quite believing all the trust that had been shown him and Kenshin content to leave him alone with his thoughts for a little while.

"Kaoru-dono is pretty bewildering, isn't she?" Soujirou paused in mid-slice, knife still in the air, to look up at Kenshin's unexpected comment. He returned to his careful slicing for a few moments before responding.

"Is it a habit of hers to just drag people home? Doesn't she know that isn't safe?"

Kenshin laughed. He couldn't help it. Poor Soujirou's tone was downright confused. "I'm grateful for that habit, actually. That's how I ended up here in the first place. Besides, Kaoru-dono has excellent taste in people." _Well, except for that time she let Saitou into the dojo._ Even that had worked out eventually, though.

"Takani-sensei said the same thing yesterday." Kenshin raised an eyebrow. It was rare for the lady doctor to praise Kaoru in such a manner. _Probably because she's also grateful for that habit of hers…_

"Did she now?"

"Yeah." The miso was starting to boil, a sign that it was time to take it off the heat. He would grill the fish just as everyone sat down, so it would still be warm.

"I might leave this morning." Kenshin stopped thinking about his plans for breakfast. _She would never forgive me if I let him walk away hearing her… our… offer. _

"At least eat breakfast with us. It's the least we can do for you." 

"Really, I don't need to be repaid. Giving me a place to stay last night was more than enough…"

"Kaoru-dono would be saddened if you left without saying goodbye." He allowed a glint of hardness enter his eyes. _If nothing else, realize that I live for her happiness._ _If you upset her, things won't go well for you._

"Oh." He looked embarrassed. "Well, then, I suppose I will impose upon your kindness for breakfast…"

"Good. Breakfast is almost ready, why don't you go see if Tsubame-dono and Kaoru-dono are up?" Kenshin relaxed again.

"Alright." Soujirou quickly finished his task and wiped his hands on the towel Kenshin gave him. _Kaoru, it's up to you to convince him if you want him to stay._

+++

Breakfast was proceeding smoothly. Kaoru smiled as she bit into one of Kenshin's famous usagi-onigiri. _He's always taking care of me. _Kenshin had noticed the difficulty she had with the chopsticks as she tried to pick up food and simultaneously hold her arm in a position that wasn't acutely painful. He had solved the problem by making onigiri with bits of fish and pickles in them, making it easier for her to eat.

Tsubame was sitting across from Kaoru, with Kenshin on the right and Soujirou on the left. She noticed that Tsubame was sneaking looks at Soujirou when she thought he wasn't looking. _He probably knows, but he's just too polite to embarrass her. _Her estimation of Soujirou went up several notches. She hid her smile in her teacup. _I don't want to embarrass her either. _They talked about meaningless subjects, the weather, how good Kenshin's cooking was, her injuries, before the sounding of running feet came from the front of the house. _That must be Yahiko and Sanosuke._

"KENSHIN!! I just heard from Shinji that Kao—" the shoji to the dining room was thrown open with a loud crack and Yahiko burst through, followed closely by Sanosuke. They abruptly stopped as they took in the very domestic scene before them. Kaoru did look like she had been on the losing side of a fight, her posture not quite normal, but everyone else was calmly eating breakfast. "Oh, you're fine, busu. The way Shinji made it sound…"

"What the hell is he doing here?!" An accusatory finger in Soujirou's direction accompanied the outraged bellow. "I thought that the smiling bastard was doing the wandering thing! If you hurt Jou-chan then--"

"Sanosuke! Calm down, already! Soujirou was the one who saved me!"

"EH?!"

"Yesterday, Soujirou was the one who saved me and Tsubame-chan from those ruffians."

"You're kidding, right? Why would—"

"Shinji said something about a weird smiling swordsman…"

"Now, now, Sano, Yahiko, come in and have some breakfast…"

"Do you know who that is, Jou-chan?"

"Seta Soujirou of course."

"You mean THAT'S the Tenken?! I thought he'd be bigger…"

"Yahiko-kun, that's rude!"

"Maybe I should take my leave—"

"NO!" Everyone completely stopped at the unexpected outburst from both girls. Tsubame, realizing what she had just done, immediately reached for the tray Kenshin had brought breakfast in on and attempted to hide. Luckily it had been empty when she reached for it, so no dishes were broken. Kaoru, on the other hand, looked like she was working herself up into an "avenging angel" fury, the likes of which had never been seen before.

"No, please wait until I've made my offer to you." Energy radiated from Kaoru lending her an intensity that only Kenshin had seen before. She flashed a look at Sanosuke and Yahiko. "I'm glad you're both here. This is important so sit down and keep your mouths shut." They sat.

"Offer…?"

Kaoru faced Soujirou next. "You said last night that you hadn't had much experience with what a real family is like, correct?"

"Y-yeah…"

"Do you want to know what it feels like to be part of one?" He thought about it for a little while before nodding slowly. "Are you willing to put your trust in others?" Another slow nod. "Are you willing to let others depend on you?" This nod was accompanied by a confident smile. "Are you willing to let the past go?" The confidence leached out of his smile as he retreated behind his smiling, expressionless face.

"What do you mean?"

"Maybe I should rephrase that. Are you willing to accept your past as important to who you are, yet also start anew from the present?"

"I'm still not sure I understand…"

"In other words, I'm telling you that no matter how dirty and violent and horrible your past was, that was what made you "you." I accept the past as a part of Seta Soujirou, but to me it is unimportant. The part of Seta Soujirou that I care about started life yesterday when a mysterious swordsman saved me." He was staring at her, a suspicious brightness in his eyes. "What I'm trying to offer you is a family and a home, for as long as you care to join us. I'm not interested in your past. All I want is for you to have an opportunity to learn a little more about the people of this Meiji era that Kenshin fought so hard for."

Sanosuke banged his fist against the table. "Jou-chan, are you crazy? This guy kil—"

"That's enough, Sanosuke. Didn't you hear me? I. Don't. Care."

"But—"

"You should listen to yourself! People change. If I had used that same logic on Kenshin, none of us would be sitting at this table today. But I didn't, because I knew that he was a good man. Just like now." Sanosuke looked like he had swallowed a particularly nasty bite of Kaoru's cooking after the rebuke, but grudgingly settled down next to Kenshin. With Sanosuke taken care of for the time being, Kaoru returned her attention to Soujirou. "Kenshin and I talked about it last night and he agrees with me, ne Kenshin?"

"Yes."

+++

Soujirou looked back and forth at all of the people seated around the table. Kaoru was smiling and giving off a glow of unconditional acceptance. Tsubame had lowered her tray enough to show him a shy, encouraging smile. Next to her, the young swordsman Yahiko sat with his arms crossed over his chest and his shinai sticking up from its place behind his back. His expression was a mix of things he couldn't quite decipher. He remembered the tall, spiky-haired man from the day he had fought Himura-san in Kyoto. Sanosuke still looked like he was involved in something distasteful, though he wasn't outwardly protesting anymore. Lastly, Kenshin sat between him and Sanosuke, a serene smile on his face.

_Himura-san isn't trying to influence my decision, but if I agree to stay I can learn a lot from him. And I like talking to Kaoru-san, for some reason. It feels safe here. Maybe if I let them… _

"Well?"

_If I let them reach out to me…_"Sanosuke-san is right when he says I've done many terrible things. But… if you say my past doesn't matter… then…" _If they want to reach out to me… _He looked up into Kaoru's face. He couldn't imagine anyone who looked, or was, more welcoming or loving than her. _No wonder she's so important to Himura-san, or to these other men of hers…_ "Then… I would be pleased to impose upon you for as long as I am able."

++++

"Yatta!" In her happiness, Kaoru impulsively reached out and hugged Soujirou. His pole-axed expression was enough to send Tsubame into a fit of giggles behind the tray, Yahiko into whole-hearted guffaws, and even Kenshin chuckled trying in vain to disguise them as coughs.

"Um…Kaoru-san… maybe.. uh…"

"Oops, sorry Sou-chan. I didn't mean to startle you like that…" Kaoru let him go and bowed her head in apology.

"Jou-chan, I don't know what's up with you sometimes. You're treating him like some sorta goddamn tame kappa or somethin'" Sanosuke muttered around a fishbone.

"Kappa?" Soujirou echoed confusedly.

"Kappa? Sanosuke, that's brilliant!" Kaoru clapped her hands together in excitement. "Did you hear that, Sou-chan? You're a kappa!" Soujirou didn't look happy about that at all.

"But kappa are _evil_, Kaoru-san…"

"Not all kappa are evil, Sou-chan. Haven't you ever heard the story about the good river kappa?"

"Good river kappa…?"

"Yeah." Kaoru sipped some tea and then cleared her throat before she began. "Once upon a time there was a man named Kenji who lived in a big house next to a river. The river was deepest next to his house, being over six meters deep, and looked dark and unfathomable. One evening, Kenji came home and asked his servants to hitch his horse up to a shady tree next to the river. He went inside to take care of some things, and when he went outside again a kappa was trying to drag his horse into the river with the help of his trusted servant Aomori, who had been bewitched. "

"You're making this up, aren't you busu?" Kaoru smacked him. "Ow! What the hell was that for?!"

"Now, Kenji was a very clever man, so even though he was angry he formulated a plan. He fetched a strong rope from the shed and snuck up behind the pair. Kenji caught hold of the Kappa and drug him away river before he tied him up. During the struggle, some water had splashed out of the kappa's head, which released Aomori from his bewitchment. Together, Aomori and Kenji hung the kappa upside down from a pine tree.

"Kenji scolded the kappa about his bad behavior. He threatened to have Aomori kill the kappa as a warning to others. The kappa grew frantic and struggled. More water splashed out of his head, while the rope binding him became tighter and tighter. Finally he begged Kenji's forgiveness over and over again.

"Kenji was actually very kind-hearted and fair. He felt pity for the kappa, and asked him to make a promise saying, 'If you swear with all of your heart, then I will forgive you, but you must first confess your sins and make restitutions.'

"The kappa was surprised that he was offered the chance, and made his promise whole-heartedly. 'I confess to you that I've done many wrongs. I regret my past actions very much. I promise you that even if the river were to flow in a different direction, I won't pull people or animals from the village into the water. I will never do anything wrong again. For sparing my life today, I will make all of my fellow kappa uphold this promise forever.'

"After the kappa had made his promise, Kenji and Aomori cut him down from the pine tree. They made him turn around three times and repeat his promise, which he did obediently with a smile, and then they let him go.

"So, the kappa became the guardian of the river. After that there were no more incidents in the village concerning kappa. Everyone lived happily ever after."

"That still sounds like something you made up just now, busu."

"How rude! My mother used to tell me that story, Yahiko-chan!"

"Don't call me –CHAN!"

"I still don't understand why you want to call me a kappa…"

"Oh yeah!" Kaoru paused in mid-swing and abruptly let go of the front of Yahiko's gi. "I forgot to explain that, didn't I?" She laughed. "Everyone in the Kenshin-gumi has a nickname. You've heard Rooster head's and Yahiko-chan's already…"

"Shut up, busu!"

"Yeah, Jou-chan…"

"Megumi-san is 'Fox lady,' they call me 'Raccoon girl,' Misao-chan is 'Weasel girl'…"

"Misao-chan?"

"Makimachi Misao, leader of the Oniwabanshu…?"

"Oh, her. She does sort of resemble a weasel…" Somewhere Misao sneezed.

"Aoshi is 'Iceman', and Master Hiko is 'Superman.'"

"Why does shishou have a nickname?"

"Don't Himura-san and Tsubame-san have nicknames?"

"Nope."

"I always wondered why not, Kaoru-dono…"

"The entire point about having the nicknames is so that we can argue with each other. You're much too polite, and we have enough trouble getting Tsubame-chan to _talk_ to us that tagging her with an embarrassing nickname would just be mean. Which reminds me… does being called 'kappa' really bother you?"

"Sort of…" _He's retreating behind that damn smiling mask of his… _

"You don't look like it, though. Not all kappa are bad, remember? Like I said, the point about calling each other names is so we can yell and let out our emotions. It's also a family thing too, you know. I only let them call me 'raccoon girl' or 'busu' or 'Jou-chan' because that's the way it should be between siblings. If it were anyone else, I'd hurt them. Badly. It's just like teasing. There are certain subjects that are taboo, but the rest is fair game." By now she had piqued everyone's interest and had their undivided attention. _I'm not going to forget how important you both are to me, Yahiko, Sanosuke. Just because I want to include Soujirou doesn't mean I'm going to force either one of you out._

"What subjects?" Soujirou sounded genuinely interested.

"Well… basically anything that happened before I met them, anything about the Revolution, what Sano's _real_ relationship with Katsu is…" Kaoru listed the points on her fingers as she went.

"F*** you, Jou-chan." Sanosuke mumbled around his fish bone, glaring daggers at the cheerful girl.

Kaoru giggled before continuing. "Tsubame-chan, and Saitou."

"You tease Himura-san?"

"Sure."

"About what, if I may ask?"

Kaoru, Yahiko, and Sano began to grin evilly. "His laundry obsession…"

"It's fun!"

"His pink gi."

"It's _magenta_!"

"Happy the Sakabatou."

"I never named my sword that!" The normally unflappable Kenshin was beginning to look just a tiny bit irate.

"But we don't tease him that often because it's really not any fun."

"Yeah, he won't chase us like busu will."

"Or try to gnaw my hair off like the brat."

"So there is really no point to it, because he just doesn't react like he's supposed to. He doesn't even tease us back. He just kind of agrees most of the time." Kaoru was getting increasingly annoyed. _Stupid Kenshin! _

"Which is boring!"

"You'll be much more fun, won't you Sou-chan?"

Soujirou grinned. "I'll do my best not to bore you… Yahiko-chan."

Yahiko saw red. "DON'T CALL ME –CHAN!!!!" He had jumped onto the table in the middle of his famous line, intending to clobber Soujirou with his shinai. Unfortunately, Soujirou was no longer sitting at the table. He blinked, and then felt a tap on his shoulder. Yahiko whirled just in time to see Soujirou take off through the door that led onto the porch and out into the courtyard. With an incoherent shout of wounded pride, he took off in hot pursuit waving his shinai as threateningly as he could.

++++

Soujirou grinned and waved merrily to Kaoru as he sped by the door to the dining room a second time. He had chosen a pace that would keep him just ahead of the younger boy. It wasn't nearly as fast as he was truly capable of, but this was for recreation and not training. Yahiko was keeping up, surprisingly, and was even able to shout insults and threats occasionally. None of them made any sense, though they were liberally spiced with "stupid kappa" and curses that most eleven year olds hadn't even heard yet.

_This is fun. _He realized. _Maybe… I will find some answers here…_

++++

Author's Notes:

Many people are asking what the pairings are in this fic. (You mean, it isn't obvious? O.o) Sano will reveal everything in the next two chapters, so please be patient. Usagi means rabbit; onigiri means rice ball. "Busu" means Ugly; Yahiko uses it often to refer to Kaoru "Yatta" is an exclamation of happiness like "Yay!" Kappa are creatures from Japanese mythology. They are not entirely malevolent, and if they make a promise to a human being they will honor it forever. Kappa basically look like Gollum from Lord of the Rings… only they are normally portrayed with a tortoise shell on their backs. They are fond of cucumbers, smile a lot, live in bodies of water, and are often polite to a fault. Their distinguishing feature is the little indentation on the tops of their heads that holds water. If water spills from their head, then the kappa's powers are weakened. (Source: Japanese Mythology by Julie Piggot, and http:// www. Onmarkproductions . com/ html/ kappa.shtml [copy, paste, take out spaces]) **The legend Kaoru tells is modified from the story of Genta found on the internet page.** 


	4. A Little Less Conversation

**Patchwork Family** Chapter Four– "A Little Less Conversation"

**Author:** sayochama

**Rating:** PG13 (for Sano's potty mouth)

**Disclaimer:** Rurouni Kenshin does not belong to me, no matter how many dollars I sacrifice to the mad doujinshi fairy. I also don't own any of the chapter titles (those are Elvis songs, by the way). They belong to someone else. I just listen to the King as I write, that I do. O.o

**Thoughts** are in _italics. _

***This is chapter doesn't have much dialogue, but I kind of wanted to give each character some special time to reflect the expansion of his/her family.*** 

**++++++ **

In the days that followed Soujirou's acceptance of Kaoru and Kenshin's offer, the group began to tentatively absorb him into their daily lives. Some had better results than others. But one thing was for certain. Soujirou was _very, very_ good at running away.

Mornings belonged to Kenshin, and Soujirou quickly realized that the best way to interact alone with him was to wake up early and help with morning chores. As it turned out Soujirou was pretty handy in the kitchen, a holdout from his childhood arsenal of skills, and Kenshin didn't object to his presence overly. It was rather hard for Kenshin to be even remotely annoyed by the "tame" kappa-boy, as he acted like an overgrown and overeager, but abused, puppy around him. Eager to please, eager for the acceptance, yet at the same time wary and just a tiny bit distrustful. Soujirou wanted Kenshin to drop pearls of wisdom about life, about how he found his answers. Most of the pearls of wisdom he had collected so far concerned the correct way to clean a fish, how to prepare proper pickles, and how to make onigiri animals. Soujirou wasn't about to give up, though. Besides making onigiri animals was a useful skill, especially when he saw how delighted Kaoru and Tsubame were by the whimsical things.

Breakfast and the mornings, while she was still injured, belonged solely to Kaoru. He was never quite as wary with Kaoru as he was with the boys. Kenshin, and he later realized himself, were both apt to mother hen her constantly. This lasted until she had Yahiko fetch "Darling" from the dojo after a few days. From that point, anyone who annoyed her had Darling waved in their face until they either left her alone or got smacked in the head. Most of the time Soujirou backed off. Kenshin was a "Darling" magnet. The rest of the time, when Kaoru wasn't annoyed about being injured, was filled with various pats, hugs, and smiles that he could tell had Yahiko and Kenshin on edge. He wasn't quite sure why Kaoru was showering him with attention, not that he didn't enjoy it, but the looks he was getting from Yahiko were beginning to make him worry.

Soujirou had embraced the concept of teasing and name-calling whole-heartedly. It was an odd but pleasant sensation to able to deliberately insult someone without fear of violent, bloody retribution. Not that Yahiko and Sanosuke, his favorite victims, didn't threaten him bodily harm. Quite the contrary in fact, but they had to catch him first. 

He didn't react to their teasing at all, reflexes to name-calling being totally repressed as a child, but that didn't stop him from taunting them back on choice subjects. A part of him also thought that he deserved every horrible name thrown at him, which was why he was always being chased instead of the other way around.

+++++

Kaoru was very happy about how easily Soujirou was assimilating into the 'Kenshin-gumi'. She had faith in Soujirou and his goodness, as well as in the other members of her family. She knew that things were going to work out.

Kaoru really couldn't have been more thrilled by her most recent acquisition to her family. He was always happy to run errands and accompany her places when Kenshin was busy. Soujirou somehow stirred her maternal instincts as well, long suppressed by Yahiko's attitude and Kenshin's manufactured distance. As a result, many of the touches that Yahiko and Kenshin denied her were given with greater enthusiasm to Soujirou. She wasn't sure if that was bothering her two other housemates, but outwardly things remained the same so she didn't let it bother her. 

Soujirou turned out to be very, very useful. After almost a week of infirmary, Kaoru was determined to go back to teaching. Megumi had left strict orders with Kenshin about what Kaoru was and wasn't allowed to do. As a result, Kaoru had spent most of her time babysitting Ayame and Suzume from the porch and being carried to and from the outhouse. It was driving her crazy. Her ankle had healed enough that she could walk around on it for short periods, as long as she rested. Even though serious sword work was beyond her because of her other injuries, there was no reason she couldn't supervise. Besides, with an extra mouth to feed and the others without steady work, kenjutsu classes were the dojo's only source of income.

That firmly decided, she told Yahiko at dinner that she would be putting him in charge of leading the class tomorrow, which made him ecstatic to be trusted with that sort of responsibility. Kenshin glowered at her from across the table.

"Kaoru-dono… you know Megumi-dono said that you need to rest for at least another week before you go back to teaching."

"I know." Kenshin didn't intimidate Kaoru in the least. She glowered right back.

"Aren't your classes tomorrow more advanced?"

"Hey, Kenshin, do you think I'm not capable of it?" This was from Yahiko, who had realized that his "big chance" to show how grown up he was might be taken away.

"Yes, they are advanced, and no, Yahiko is perfectly capable of leading classes."

"How are you going to demonstrate?" When Yahiko had been her only student, demonstrating techniques had been easy. Now that there were more students at the dojo, she had taken to giving demonstration matches with Yahiko to show both the new technique and how it could be defended. It had also been a useful tool for review of techniques already learned.

Knowing what Kenshin's reaction was going to be, she still said it anyway. "I'm well enough to be the attacker…"

"Absolutely not." Kaoru cursed under her breath.

"Fine, what do you suggest we do then?"

"The money I earned with Sano should be enough to hold us over until you recover next week."

"That money went to paying the taxes on the dojo. We still need to eat, you know."

Kenshin decided to take a different approach. "Kaoru-dono, I don't object to you supervising classes, I just object to you putting any more strain on your injuries."

"Why don't you take your own advice when you're injured, Kenshin!"

"That's different."

Kaoru was about to let loose with a scathing retort, this was an obviously long-standing argument between them, when Soujirou interrupted. "Perhaps I could take Kaoru-san's place in the demonstration…" He had been watching them argue back and forth as if they had both grown second heads. 

"You'd really do that, Sou-chan?" He nodded. Kaoru let a delighted "yatta!" and hugged him, while she stuck her tongue out at Kenshin. Kenshin didn't look too happy about that turn of events, but he quit protesting.

So, the following morning everyone trooped out to the dojo after breakfast so Kaoru could explain what Soujirou should do. Kenshin even abandoned the laundry to make sure that Kaoru didn't do anything strenuous, threatening to take Darling away if she even thought about joining Yahiko and Soujirou at the front of the class. Kaoru had pouted and looked annoyed for a little while, but she was actually glad that Kenshin cared enough about her welfare that he had left his precious laundry unwashed. She forgave him by holding his hand and leaning against him as they watched Soujirou and Yahiko spar.

Her instructions to Soujirou had been relatively brief. "Kamiya Kasshin Ryuu is a style that is based on the principle of incapacitating people without killing them, which is why we use bokken and shinai instead of normal swords. You'll be playing the role of the attacker, while Yahiko will be demonstrating some of the techniques we'd use in certain situations. Our students aren't going to be facing people of your skill level normally, so if you act like those punks you fought the day we met, that would be ideal." Soujirou had smiled and nodded. He and Yahiko spent the next hour practicing together as Yahiko, from Kaoru's instructions, showed him what the day's lesson was going to be on.

Soujirou and Yahiko worked well enough together that first day that Kaoru felt comfortable enough to just supervise and was able give each of her paying students some individual attention. Even when Kaoru was recovered enough to take over, she decided that the arrangement suited her. Things settled down again for her, but this time she wasn't be stir crazy.

+++++

Kenshin the Rurouni had adapted to Soujirou's presence quickly and easily. He actually enjoyed Soujirou's company as he made breakfast, though he still valued the time before he started cooking as his own. Soujirou respected that, and as a result they got along well. He was making the effort to show him how a "normal" family interacted, the roles that everyone was expected to play, and was pleased that Soujirou was also trying to expend the same amount of effort.

Kenshin the Battousai had not adapted to Soujirou's presence quite as nicely, or as quickly, as the Rurouni did. While Battousai understood that what Kenshin was doing was the right thing, it didn't stop him from whispering outrageous comments about how damn appealing Kaoru's hugs looked. Soujirou had become something of a rival for her affection, which he realized was probably inadvertent on both of their parts, but he still felt compelled to think of ways to show everyone that Kaoru was _his_.

The distance that Kenshin had created and maintained between himself and Kaoru with the intention of keeping her safe was beginning to bother him, and he wasn't sure how to bridge the gap. Battousai had some suggestions, most of which involved Happy and roast rack of Tenken, which were immediately discarded. _Happy wasn't meant to be used in such a way! _

_Wait, when did I start thinking of my sakabatou as 'Happy'? Probably after Kaoru-dono started calling it that after learning all those funny English words from Tae-dono…_

In the meantime, Kenshin decided to act as normally as possible and not let the closeness that was developing between Soujirou and Kaoru bother him too much. It was a good thing for everyone if Soujirou became a well-adjusted member of society. _You had Tomoe to teach you things before you went wandering, remember? He deserves the same chance to learn about what really matters in life. _He was willing to share, for a little while at least. Besides, Kaoru had a special smile for him alone. They'd been through too much together to be broken apart so quickly by one person.

+++++

Yahiko was jealous. Not only was Kaoru more affectionate towards Soujirou, but Kenshin also seemed to be paying special attention to him. To make matters worse, he darkly suspected that Tsubame had a crush on the cursed always-smiling-when-Kaoru-wasn't-confusing-him kappa too. He could hardly stand it. All the attention that he was used to getting from everyone was suddenly shared with the newcomer, and he didn't like it. Not one bit.

Yahiko would go out of his way to try to provoke him into a fight, but he refused to be provoked. Somehow it always ended up with him chasing Soujirou around the dojo, instead of the other way around. On the plus side, he was actually becoming a better runner from all the chasing he did. Kaoru didn't seem to mind either, and he suspected that she encouraged it as part of his training. Yahiko wanted things to go back to the way they were, before the stupid kappa came and wrecked things for him.

Kaoru, who had been nothing better to do than sit on the porch under Kenshin's watchful eye from the laundry bucket, noticed his feelings the second day.

"Are you jealous, Yahiko?" she had asked quietly as he watched Tsubame and Soujirou chat quietly with Kenshin.

"Jealous of what, busu?" He didn't want her to know, to think he was childish.

She sighed. "Jealous of Soujirou, of course."

"Hell no. What would I care what you guys do with that stupid kappa?" The three most important people in his life all wanted Soujirou to stay, so he was going to try to be good.

The mature part of him realized that he was doing Good in a way that had no relation to his skill with a sword. He knew that there was no way he could ever repay Kenshin for saving him from the yakuza or Kaoru for taking him in and teaching him kenjutsu. For them he did his best to keep his complaints about Soujirou quiet, and forced himself to spend some time with him. They had Kaoru and Kenshin's kindness in common. After he got over his initial jealousy, which took a few days, he actually found that he liked Soujirou just the tiniest bit. He was fun to chase and spar with, especially after he got him to demonstrate some of his own style with a bokken.

Yahiko was still annoyed that Tsubame had a crush on the kappa, though.

++++++

Sanosuke, after his initial opposition, settled down to an easy-going friendship with Soujirou after seeing how the other occupants of the dojo were reacting to the newcomer. Kenshin and Yahiko provided him hours of free entertainment as they glowered, pouted, and acted like the jealous boys they were at the changes in Kaoru and Tsubame. Watching the drama unfolding at the dojo was more than worth the price of dropping the hostility he felt.

He would show up at the dojo after lunch to drag Soujirou off to gamble or drink, or whatever it was that Sanosuke did with himself when he wasn't brawling the streets, returning him if he was needed for afternoon classes a few hours later. He claimed that Soujirou was a lot more fun than ol' stick-in-the-mud Kenshin, but that didn't stop him from dragging them both away if they weren't busy. This lasted until chores around the dojo remained undone for several days, at which point Sanosuke had a nice chat with Kaoru and Darling.

Sanosuke didn't mind doing chores around the dojo for Kaoru though. She almost never asked for anything in return for what she did for him. He _had_ thought that with the addition of Soujirou he wouldn't have been put work, but Darling disabused him of that notion. In any case, it was a fabulous excuse to hang around and watch his friends act oddly, which he took full advantage of. _At least the fox isn't fawning all over him._

++++++

Tsubame had a crush on someone for the second time in her life. Soujirou-san was so sweet and handsome and polite, almost the complete opposite of Yahiko. He spoke very gently when he was with her, which encouraged her to quit hiding behind her tray so much. He reminded her of Kenshin, almost, but younger and with less of a burden.

She began to spend most of her free time at the dojo under the excuse of helping because of Kaoru's injuries. As a result, she sometimes had to walk back to the Akebeko at night to help with the dinner crowd. Usually Yahiko would accompany her, but one day Soujirou decided to come along too.

"I've heard a lot about the Akebeko. Do you think your friend would let me help out?" Tsubame had said yes, and Tae had been thrilled to have an extra helper on such a busy night.

The number of women that came in for dinner that night after they heard about the new waiter surprised Tsubame. She heard later from Kaoru that Tae had come over the next day and had practically begged Kaoru to let her keep Soujirou. Apparently he was excellent for business. Tae hadn't had that many women through the restaurant since the last time she had had Sano discharge his debt by waiting tables. Tsubame hadn't been allowed to work that night for some reason, though the following day Tae had been counting large stacks of coins and crowing about being able to "wipe out Sano-san's tab _and_ open the new expansion." When she had asked Tae about what Sanosuke had done to earn that much money, she had laughed and said that she would explain when Tsubame was older.

A lot of people spilled their drinks on Soujirou's shirt that night.

Tae offered Soujirou a job the next day after Kaoru had explained that Soujirou really wasn't _hers, "He's his own person, you know!"_, and he accepted. Tsubame was happy that she got to spend more time with him, as well as with Yahiko. 

A lot of people spilled drinks on Soujirou. 

+++++

Things continued in this manner for a few weeks until a message arrived from the Tokyo Oniwabanshu.

_"Himura! Kaoru-san! We're coming to visit!" _

[to be continued…..]

++++++

Author's Notes 

Point #1- I was trying to go for a more humorous approach in this chapter. ::crickets sound in the distance:: What, you couldn't tell? O.o; Darling is Kaoru's bokken. I thought it needed a name too. (maybe I should write a side story about that…). Whew! 2 updates in 2 days… I felt inspired.

Point #2 – I'm a big fan of Battousai/Kaoru fics… please excuse Kenshin's split personalities. Will work on a more WAFFy incarnation of him for the next chapter... 

Point #3 – Sano is a lot smarter than he lets on. ^_^ 

Point #4 – While I'm a fan of alternate pairings ::points wildly to her doujinshi collection/wish list:: Tsubame _just has a crush_ on Soujirou. Wouldn't you, if he had appeared like a shining prince and saved a dear friend? Besides, he's just so much more approachable and polite than Yahiko normally is. That's why he fascinates her. ^^;

**Random Omake:**

**Kenshin:** My hands are so stained… I am hardly fit to touch someone as pure as Kaoru-dono…

**Soujirou:** So… does this mean I can date Kaoru-san?

**Kenshin:** Like hell, de gozaru.

Reader Responses (because y'all are just so dang cool) 

**Yume: **Thanks for your note! I'm glad you like it so far.

**Lianne:** Hee! That's my favorite part of that chapter too. Thanks for your review!

**The tarik: **You think it has a homey atmosphere? Score! That was exactly what I was going for. ^_^

**Anonymous reviewer:** Tsubame x Soujirou? Has anyone ever even considered such a pairing before? Intriguing…

**Yuhi:** Look, it's a new chapter! I haven't finished yet (I still have about three more chapters planned), so please be patient as I churn these puppies out. ^_^

**Sandy: **I'm so glad that my writing is conveying the senses that I'm trying to build into it. ^+^ I haven't decided if he's going to stay forever, yet. What do people think?

**Silver Rune: **You appreciate my humor? ::Hugs:: You deserve a cookie, and nice semi-humorous update. ^_^ 

**Goku-chan: **::points to the part above the "to be continued":: Guess who's coming for a visit? whee! 

**Chiruken: **I'm glad you like it so far... I'm trying so hard to make everyone stay in character. ^_^;

**CurlsofSerenity**: WAFF is a good thing. ^_^ Wait... did I make Kenshin really cold for some reason? O.o;; If I did, I didn't mean to... he's just having some slight angst problems right now. I'm hoping the drugs will correct it. ^^;; 

**Jefcat: **Thanks for all of your reviews! ^_^;; I was really proud of my kappa story for some reason... .;; 


	5. Return to Sender

**Patchwork Family** Chapter Five– "Return to Sender"

**Author:** sayochama

**Rating:** PG13 (for Sano's potty mouth)

**Disclaimer:** Rurouni Kenshin does not belong to me, no matter how many dollars I sacrifice to the mad doujinshi fairy. I also don't own any of the chapter titles (those are Elvis songs, by the way). They belong to someone else. I just listen to the King as I write, that I do. O.o

**Thoughts** are in _italics. _

+++++++

….Things continued in this manner for a few weeks until a message arrived from the Tokyo Oniwabanshu.

_"Himura! Kaoru-san! We're coming to visit!" _

+++++++

Kenshin politely thanked the messenger, while Kaoru waited until the ninja was safely out of sight before beginning to panic. Notes from Misao usually arrived hours, not days, ahead of her. When asked about why she didn't give more advance warning, her response had been, "A ninja's stock and trade is in _surprise!_ What would be the point of being Oniwabanshu if we told people where we were going all the time?" If Misao had her way she wouldn't send a note at all, just show up unexpectedly. This meant that Aoshi was with her, since he was marginally more socialized than Misao and would insist that a note be sent. Not that his notes were ever very particular about details unless it was Oniwabanshu business, but at least he sent them most of the time. As it was late afternoon when the note came, Kenshin expected the pair by dinner the next day at the latest, though they would more than likely arrive that night.

"Kenshin, what are we going to do? Not that I'm unhappy that Misao-chan is coming for a visit because I know that she and Sou-chan would get along fine, but she has _Aoshi_ with her and I have no idea what he would do…" Kaoru had reached the same conclusion as Kenshin.

"Well, we can't stop them from coming at this point. All we can do is prepare Soujirou for the visitors and hope for the best."

"Prepare me for what visitors?" Kaoru and Kenshin both turned to see Soujirou standing behind them, shirt a little stained from working at the Akebeko that afternoon, smiling questioningly.

"Oh, welcome back, Sou-chan."

"I'm home." He said to Kaoru, before looking back and forth at the two of them. "What visitors?"

Kaoru and Kenshin exchanged worried glances. "We should discuss it over dinner. Why don't you go get cleaned up, we'll be ready to eat soon." Soujirou nodded at Kenshin's suggestion and acquiesced with a pleasant, if puzzled, smile.

"I just hope they don't show up today…"

"Me too, Kaoru-dono."

+++++

Kaoru and Kenshin waited until Sanosuke, Yahiko, and Soujirou were seated at the table before making their announcement. "Aoshi and Misao-dono are coming for a visit. We expect them sometime between now and tomorrow evening."

"EH?! Why?" This was from Yahiko, speaking around a mouthful of rice.

"I don't know. We got a message from Misao-chan a little while ago through the Tokyo Oniwabanshu saying, 'We're coming to visit!' without any reasons or details."

"That sounds like the Weasel girl all right. She have the Iceman with her?"

"Well, duh! The message said, 'we' didn't it? Who else would she travel with, Jiya?"

"Shut up, Yahiko-chan."

"Don't call me –chan!" Yahiko abandoned dinner to attempt to gnaw off Sanosuke's hair.

"So that's what had you two worried earlier. You're worried about how Shinomori-san and Makimachi-san are going to react to me being here." Soujirou had a light bulb moment.

"Well, it's not so much Misao-chan we're worried about actually. After I explain things to her, she should be totally fine. It's Aoshi that worries me…" Kaoru trailed off and stared into her cup of tea, ignoring Yahiko and Sanosuke brawling in the background.

"If Shinomori-san's reaction worries you so much, perhaps it would be better if I left…" Kenshin could only shake his head at Soujirou's foolish offer. That night Soujirou happened to be sitting within Kaoru's reach because of the addition of Sanosuke to the table, which she took full advantage of. _He's going to be a Darling magnet tonight…_

"SOUJIROU NO BAKA!" she yelled, grabbing his (new) shirt before he could scoot away. She began to shake him. "Honestly." Shake. "How could you think that I don't mean you to stay while they're here?" Shake. "I could've just offered to put you up in an inn or something if I was that worried." Shake. "For someone who looks pretty smart, you sure are slow on the uptake." Shake. "Sure, I'm worried about Aoshi-san's reaction, but he doesn't live here and he doesn't dictate my life." Shake. "If it bothers him so much, he can just go back to Kyoto." Shake. "You haven't even been here a month yet!" Shake. "How can I, in good conscience, let you wander off again when you haven't even learned that much yet?" Shake. "Baka, baka, baka!" She let him go.

Somewhere in the middle of her tirade Soujirou had gone swirly-eyed. He had heard all of the important things she wanted to say though and, blushing, had gotten a warm, fuzzy feeling inside. _Kaoru-san really does care about me…_Yahiko quit gnawing on Sanosuke's head to snicker at the confused kappa boy. Kenshin was also amused, though he did his best to hide it.

"Geez. Kenshin and I will come up with something, so stop saying stupid things okay?"

"O-okay…" He blinked a few times to try and get rid of the dizziness, but was largely unsuccessful. After a few minutes the sick feeling went away, and everyone returned to eating normally. There were a few random compliments to Kenshin's cooking, and Soujirou was asked how the Akebeko had been during the lunch rush, but everyone seemed lost in their own thoughts.

That is, until a very familiar, irrepressibly cheerful voice bellowed from the front of the house, "HIMURAAA!! KAORU-SAAAAAAAN! YAHIKO-CHAAAN!! IS ANYBODY HOME?!"

"DON'T CALL ME –CHAAAAAAAAAN!" Yahiko bellowed back, reaching for his shinai. It was too late though, as Misao's cheerful giggles and the sound of footsteps on the roof preceded her before she burst into the dining room.

"So you guys were eating dinner! Thanks for yelling, Yahiko! I'm sorry for interrupting, but since Aoshi-sama sent a note ahead I thought it'd be okay if we came, because you knew we were coming and everything." She spotted Kaoru and jumped on her, enveloping her in the tightest hug she could manage. "Kaoru-saaaaaaaaaaaaaan!! I'm so glad to see you! I've missed you so much, you know. Why don't you come to Kyoto more often? Jiya and I haven't even taken you on our special tour yet! You _have_ to come for that! It's so much fun. Especially now that Himura is recovered… and oh my goodness, what happened to you?" Misao finally noticed the remains of Kaoru's injuries, and without breaking stride began to question her. "Why is your face all yellow and green? That's really yucky! Were you in a fight? Are they still wandering around free? Do you want me to go hunt them down and deliver special Oniwabanshu punishment on them?" Her eyes burned with the promise of justice for those who dared molest her best friend.

"Mi-Misao-chan… please… not so tight…" Kaoru had turned slightly blue to match her green and yellow bruises from lack of oxygen. Misao squeaked and turned her loose with a quick apology. Before she could start up again, Kaoru took a deep breath and attempted to answer her friend's rapid-fire questions. "I'm glad to see you too. We haven't had time to go to Kyoto because of classes, though we do look forward to your special tour. I _was_ in a fight, but Soujirou saved me. Last I heard the guys who did it were in jail so there's no need to deliver special punishment. Thanks for offering, though." Misao looked a bit crestfallen that she couldn't be a crusader of justice, and was about to launch into another barrage of questions when she finally assimilated the new name.

"Soujirou?" Kaoru nodded and pointed across the table to him. He looked like a deer in the headlights. It took a few seconds for Misao to make the connections between face, name, and identity, but when she did she moved with amazing speed, jumping up and moving into a battle stance, kunai in hand. "Kaoru-san, do you know who he is? He's Soujirou the Tenken! Don't you remember what I told you about him? He broke Happy the first!" Kenshin let out a soft 'oro' at Misao's use of his sakabatou's nickname. "Why are you eating dinner with him like he didn't try to kill Himura a year ago? In fact, Himura is sitting right there! Why are YOU eating with him, Himura!"

"Misao." A deep, inflectionless voice floated through the air from the open doorway, and had the effect of turning Misao off like a switch.

"Aoshi-sama." Everyone turned their attention to the tall, dark man that had appeared behind Misao. Soujirou tensed his muscles in case he had to flee from the former Oniwabanshu okashira.

"Battousai. Explain." The Rurouni internally flinched at the hated nickname, but it was _Aoshi_ so he didn't let it bother him.

"It's as Kaoru-dono said. I did not accompany her to the market several days ago and she was attacked. Soujirou was in the area and saved her. Kaoru-dono brought him home and we asked him to stay with us for a little while in thanks." Kaoru nodded enthusiastically during the explanation.

"I see." He came farther into the room. "Can I join you?" He gestured towards the table. Kaoru blinked in surprise. Aoshi was taking Soujirou's presence much better than Misao, which was totally unexpected. With Kenshin's permission he settled down at the table next to him before Kenshin went to go get extra dishes. He waited patiently until Kenshin returned with the assorted dishes needed for the two guests, murmuring thanks as Kaoru poured him some tea.

Misao was blinking rapidly and opening and closing her mouth like a beached fish. Obviously she had expected him to back her up in her protestations, not amiably ask to eat at the same table as a former enemy. She had forgotten that while she never considered Himura an enemy, Aoshi had, and that making peace with former opponents did wonderful things for the cosmic balance.

"Misao-chan, why don't you put your kunai away and join us too?" Kaoru tugged on the other girl's shirt lightly to shift her attention away from Aoshi. Misao looked down at Kaoru and then began to relax, dropping down into a kneeling position and glaring across the table at Soujirou. He did his best to look like he didn't notice her.

"But, Kaoru-san…" her voice was confused, and just a tiny bit whiney. Kaoru decided that patience and guidance was the best method to deal with Misao, so she straightened her spine and put on her best teaching face, which was at once stern and forgiving.

"Misao-chan, why don't you answer some questions for me?" She broke off her glare at Soujirou to give Kaoru a puzzled look.

"Okay."

"During the Revolution, who was Kenshin?" She had everyone's absolute attention.

Misao looked at her as if she had grown a second head. "The Hitokiri Battousai, of course. What does this have to do with—"

"Before the Revolution, who was Kenshin?"

"I don't know. He was with Hiko before that, wasn't he? 'Normal' I guess…"

"After the Revolution, who was Kenshin?"

"He was a Rurouni." Misao still didn't look like she understood where Kaoru was going with her questions.

"Who is Kenshin now?"

Misao smiled widely. She definitely knew the answer to this question. "Kaoru-san's Himura Kenshin!" Kaoru rewarded her with a fond smile before she asked her next question.

"During the Revolution, who was Aoshi-san?"

"Okashira of the Oniwabanshu."

"Before the Revolution, who was Aoshi-san?"

"A proud member of the Oniwabanshu."

"After the Revolution, who was Aoshi-san?"

Misao's face darkened slightly. "Okashira of the Oniwabanshu, but… different. Not Aoshi-sama."

"Who was Aoshi-san after he fought Kenshin the last time?"

"The real Aoshi-sama, a proud member of the Kyoto Oniwabanshu."

"Who has Aoshi-san always been?"

Misao grinned. "Mine!" Yahiko and Sanosuke let out loud guffaws over Misao's possessive statement. Kenshin discreetly coughed, trying hard to cover up his chuckles. Aoshi was coughing too; only it was because he had choked.

"While he was with Shishio, who was Soujirou?"

"The Tenken."

"Before he met Shishio, who was Soujirou?"

Misao's expression clearly said, "how am I supposed to know?" but she said tentatively, "A normal boy."

"After he fought with Kenshin, who was Soujirou?"

"That weird broom-haired guy said he became a Rurouni."

"If Soujirou were part of this family, who would he be?"

Misao thought about it for a long time before she answered. Her expression was thoughtful as she said, "Ours." Kaoru grinned and hugged the younger girl.

"Exactly right, Misao-chan. Exactly right." Misao still looked a little surprised that she had answered correctly, but when she thought about it… _Kaoru-san was reminding me that even though it shapes who a person is, the past doesn't matter. I've always loved Aoshi-sama, even through the bad parts like when he tried to kill Jiya and Himura. Kaoru-san loves Himura even though he did terrible things in the past. People change because of circumstances, but what really matters is the present. I realize that now, and I will give him a chance, even if he's super scary fast and broke Happy the first… _

For his part, Soujirou was touched by not only Kaoru's defense of his presence but Misao's acknowledgement of him as family. He had been a little surprised by Kaoru's line of questioning at first, before he realized where she was going with it. Now… _Both of them talked about family, not just as a thing exclusive to them, but including me…_It boggled his mind.

Sanosuke and Yahiko both flashed thumbs-up to Soujirou after Misao had calmed down. There weren't going to be any kunai flying at Soujirou that night, unless he called her "Weasel Girl." They didn't realize that Misao had just been added to Soujirou's internal list of "people I would do anything for" of which Kaoru and Kenshin were also a part.

There would be no weasel comments out of him. Ever.

Leaning back out of Kaoru's hug, Misao grinned a bit evilly. _If Soujirou is going to be ours, part of our family, then it's only fair that I treat him like that, ne?_ Kaoru grinned back, reading and understanding Misao's thoughts perfectly.

"Soujirooooou!" Misao bounced around Kaoru and threw herself at the hapless swordsman, wrapping him in one of breath-constricting hugs. "Hi! I'm Makimachi Misao. We were never properly introduced you know, but you who I was, right? I was there the day that you broke the first Happy that Himura had. Wow, you're pretty cute up close! I never got a very good look at you because you were also darting around like a moth. That was just about the scariest thing I had ever seen, you know, because Himura was the Hitokiri Battousai and you were faster than him and all that. Of course, Jinchuu was even more horrible and scary, but it ranks right up there behind Enishi! I'm glad you're on our side though, because we Oniwabanshu are terribly scary when we're angry, and if you had hurt Kaoru-san we would have had to something absolutely incredibly bad to you because we all adore her so much…"

"Misao-chan, let Sou-chan go. He can't breathe."

Misao giggled in the way that made the boys doubt her sanity, but she loosened up her embrace enough for Soujirou to drag in a few deep breaths. "She calls you Sou-chan? I've never met a man over the age of 13 who'll let himself be called –chan willingly! Can I call you Sou-chan too? Wait, isn't that what that freaky cross-dressing scythe-man called you? Should I call you the same thing as that weirdo? Kaoru-san calls you that, so it must be okay for me to do it too. It's so refreshing, though it might be more fun if you acted like Yahiko and wanted to chase me around for calling you that. Actually, that might not be too much fun since you're even faster than Himura and you could catch me easily…"

"I…. I don't chase… I only run…"

"Really, you only do the running? Doesn't that get boring for you? I—"

"It's okay to call me Sou-chan… I don't mind…"

"Really? Well then, Sou-chan, tee hee, dang, it's nice to talk to someone who's so good natured for once…" Misao continued to ramble, joined in her mostly one-sided conversation by a teasing Yahiko and Sanosuke, with occasional wheezed comments from Soujirou. Kaoru looked on with a fond eye, while Kenshin took the opportunity to catch up with Aoshi while Misao's attention was elsewhere.

"So, Aoshi, what brings you back to Tokyo?"

"Misao." Aoshi's normally blank expression was showing a tiny bit of emotion. Kenshin was puzzled.

"Misao-dono wanted to come to Tokyo?"

"To check on Kamiya." In the background Misao was chasing Yahiko around for calling her a weasel one too many times, while Kaoru and Darling convinced Sanosuke to be nice.

"Why would she want to check on Kaoru-dono?"

Aoshi shrugged. "A personal reason." Perhaps Misao's overly friendly behavior towards the other males of the household was beginning to bother him. Kenshin couldn't quite believe that was the case, but decided not to press the issue.

"So, how have you been?"

"Fine."

"How is everyone at the Aoiya?"

"Fine."

"Was your trip long?" Kenshin was quickly running out of topics to talk about.

"No."

"Did you take the train?"

"Yes." Aoshi had never been much of conversationalist. Kenshin was saved from asking any more polite questions by Misao, who had finally caught Yahiko and was holding him with an arm around the neck.

"Himura! I know you went through all the trouble of cooking tonight, but since I was chasing Yahiko around all the food got cold, plus we interrupted you while you were eating so I asked Kaoru if it would be okay if I treated you to the Akebeko tonight, which she said "Yes" to, so why don't we help you put the food away and go?" Misao was bubbling over with enthusiasm. "Besides, we have to celebrate another addition to the Kenshin-gumi, remember?" She bounded away, dragging Yahiko with her, leaving the rest to help Kenshin clean up the remains of dinner. That task was finished quickly, and everyone was ready to go.

Anyone who would have seen them as they set off for the Akebeko probably wouldn't have believed that they were composed of some of the most skilled fighters in Japan. Misao led, still dragging a struggling Yahiko, while she talked animatedly to Sanosuke who was next to her, and Soujirou who was behind her. Kaoru and Kenshin followed Soujirou, with Aoshi bringing up the rear. They arrived at the Akebeko at the tail end of the dinner rush, and were escorted to their favorite table by a harried-looking Tae.

Tsubame came by a few minutes later to take a quick break. "A lot of people saw Sanosuke-san come in and were wondering if he was going to serve…" she said after she greeted everyone. Sanosuke turned red.

"H-hell no! I told Tae I was never going to do that again. Ever. Not in a million years."

"What'd you do, Sanosuke? Waiting tables can't be that bad." Misao sensed a story she could tease Sanosuke with for years. Sanosuke cursed at her and mumbled something about it being embarrassing, which only made everyone more curious. Soujirou was putting the pieces together.

"Would it have to do with people spilling drinks on my shirt all the time?"

"Huh? What the hell are you talking about, kappa-boy?"

"When I work the female customers seem to get very clumsy and spill things on my shirt all the time. It's quite uncomfortable to work in, kind of clammy and gross, but it's like they expect me do something about it…"

"Tae-san gave me the night off when you worked."

"Don't tell me…" Misao looked positively demonic with glee. "You waited tables shirtless!" If possible, Sanosuke turned even redder and began to curse even more fluently. "I'm right, aren't I!" Everyone laughed at Sanosuke's obvious discomfort and embarrassment.

"He did that, among other things." Tae had appeared again with their drinks. "Tsubame-chan, break's over, and that woman at table 4 is being difficult again. Could you take care of it for me?" Tsubame nodded and the two of them were off again.

Kaoru and Misao spent the rest of the meal poking Sanosuke and saying, "What'd you do? What'd you do? What'd you do? What'd you do?" around mouthfuls of food. Sanosuke tried to ignore them, unsuccessfully, while also trying to get the choicest bits of meat away from Yahiko. He escaped at the earliest opportunity to catcalls and innuendo. Tae privately hoped that he would never live the embarrassment down so she wouldn't have to put up with his outrageous tab again. Somehow she knew that that wasn't going to happen, though. After Sanosuke left, things quieted down again while everyone listened to Misao and Kaoru catch up quietly while Yahiko went to help Tsubame with the last of the customers.

The group that returned to the dojo was different than the one that left. Misao was still giggling over Sano's "revelation" and was making outrageous guesses about what "among other things" he had done that had made him so embarrassed to Kaoru and Soujirou, while Kenshin and Aoshi trailed sedately behind. Things were definitely more interesting now that Misao was here. 

TBC…

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**Author's Notes: **

Point 1 – I've set up an LJ for fanfic related updates and notes at (http:// www. Livejournal. Com/ users/sayochama) [copy & paste into your browser, take out the spaces], so if you don't want to check back here all the time for new chapters (or would like to know what I'm currently working on), that would be the place to go. I'm much better about posting to an LJ than sending out update emails. ^^; I also changed the category of the story from General/Romance (because despite my best intentions, there just isn't that much romance in the story), to General/Humor.

Point 2 – ::**Sano** appears onstage with a list in his hand:: The Author has put me in charge of announcing the pairings. They are Jou-chan & Kenshin, Weasel Girl & Iceman, and Tsubame & Yahiko-chan. ::Yahiko screams in the distance "Don't call me chan!":: Any innuendo involving the kappa is just there because Author-san enjoys torturing him. That is all. No, wait! Why am I not involved with anyone? Eh?! Hey, Author-san, why the hell are you running away? Come back here! ::chases::

Point 3 – "Soujirou no Baka" means "Soujirou, you idiot!"

Point 4 – I forgot how Aoshi addresses Kenshin after they get back from Shishio's. Before that he called him "Battousai" and I wasn't sure if he changed it to "Himura" or what… If he did change, let's just say that Aoshi reverted to an old habit. ^^;

**Random Omake:**

::Kenshin shuffles out onto the stage looking terribly embarrassed in a pink Care Bear suit::

**Kenshin**: Sano said the surefire way to a girl's heart is to sing her a song. ::clears his throat:: This is my rendition of the famous E-ru-bi-su Pu-re-su-rii song, "Teddy Bear"… _I don't want to be your tiger, `cause tigers play too rough/ I don't want to be your lion, `cause lions ain't the kind you love enough…/ Baby, wanna be, your teddy bear…/ _

**Kaoru:** Kenshin, why don't you want to be a lion?

**Kenshin**: I thought you liked bears…

**Kaoru**: Huh? ::shows him the lion doll she got from Misao and Soujirou:: It looks just like you! I love lions the best.

**Kenshin:** Argh! ::stomps away::

::a scuffle is heard backstage amidst much cursing and the sound of Happy performing many battoujutsu::

**Reviewer Responses: **

**Lianne**: Tae learned a few words of English from a Gaijin customer who was a hopeless romantic. This is why Kaoru knows "Darling," "Happy," "Sweetie," and "Honey." 

**Lord Cirenmas**: Cool name. ^_^; Thanks! 

**Cat H**: I've changed the category accordingly. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. ^_^ Unfortunately, I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do with Sou-chan just yet. O.o; 

**RVD: **MWAH! I hope people understand my reasoning for Misao and Aoshi's reactions...

**...** : Why don't you leave a name? I update just for you. ^_^ 

**Sandy**: Heartwarming? Score! Battousai and Sano are gonna have a little chat in a future chapter, so there will definitely more delving into Kenshin's head. ^_^;; I hope you enjoyed Misao's um... "welcome" to Soujirou. ^^; I think I will make them good friends. 

**x_soukaoken_x**: I had originally intended to make this fic 8 chapters, but as I write it I keep having good ideas pop into my head. It definitely won't go beyond 10-12 though. 

**Chiruken**: Insight was what I was going for, because I wanted everyone to have an established relationship by the time Misao & Aoshi showed up. ^^;; I wasn't sure how I was going to fit that much information spaced out into episodes... so I'm glad that I was successful with the last chapter. ^_^ 

**Alexia**: I think Tsubame is underused a lot. ^^; That's why I wanted to include her, and give her some interactions with Sou-chan too. ^^;; (They're definitely *not* a pairing though...) 

**hannah taylor**: I just kind of made up Hiko's nickname.... (they call him that in one of the episode titles, but the characters themselves usually refer to him as "Master Hiko") .;; Hiko Hulk Hogan? Damn! That's way clever. I've never heard that one before. ^^; Um.. I attempted to answer the "why people spill drinks on Sou-chan" in this chapter... but maybe the reasoning only makes sense to me. O.o; Hrm. 

**teh tarik**: Battousai and Sou-chan will eventually come to an understanding, similar to the omake of ch. 4. ^^; Not really. They'll become friends. ^_^; 

**Just_Style**: Sorry to disappoint you, but this is a Kaoru x Kenshin ficcy. Kaoru just likes to mother Soujirou (so does Misao for that matter...) so their relationship is strictly platonic. 


	6. Surrender

**Patchwork Family** Chapter Six – "Surrender"

**Author:** sayochama

**Rating:** PG13 (for Sano's potty mouth)

**Disclaimer:** Rurouni Kenshin does not belong to me, no matter how many dollars I sacrifice to the mad doujinshi fairy. I also don't own any of the chapter titles (those are Elvis songs, by the way). They belong to someone else. I just listen to the King as I write, that I do. O.o

**Thoughts** are in _italics._

+++++

"You go on, Kappa-boy!"

"Yeah, we'll hold them off here."

"Don't let our sacrifice be in vain."

"Why are you still standing there? Run!"

Ayame and Suzume had been dropped off at the Dojo that morning with a bag full of suspicious looking tubes and boxes, apparently acquired from Megumi-nee. The little girls announced shortly after that they were under orders to make their Nii-chans "beautiful." Sanosuke and Yahiko had been victims of the beauty treatment before and, once they realized they couldn't escape, decided that perhaps they could spare Soujirou. Soujirou for his part couldn't understand why Yahiko and Sanosuke would want him to run from the two angelic looking little girls, even if they had a gleam of devilment in their big, innocent eyes, so he just stood there smiling in a way that said "these-weirdoes-at-the-Kamiya-dojo-are-confusing-the-heck-out-of-me-again." It also helped that Misao, Kaoru, and Darling had volunteered to chase and return any attempted escapees. Soujirou really didn't feel like running from any of the girls that day.

"Ne, Ayame-chan, why aren't you going after Kenshin too?" This was from Sanosuke who, after he realized that Soujirou wasn't going to run away, decided that all of the men (well, except Aoshi) should share in the "beauty treatment" too.

"Ken-nii's already beautiful," Ayame replied. Kenshin blushed as he scrubbed at the laundry bucket. "Megumi-nee said that we should work hardest on you and Yahiko-nii."

"Make you extra special beautiful!" Suzume ran up and hugged Sanosuke's leg. "Sit, sit!" She commanded, jumping up and down in excitement. Sanosuke sat down with ill grace, cursing and mumbling about the many ways one could skin a fox. Yahiko wasn't much better, but his cursing and mumbling had more to do with what would happen if Tsubame saw him like this. Ayame dumped the bag of cosmetics down on the porch.

"Soujirou-nii, Megumi-nee said Sano-nii and Yahiko-nii needed lots of work." Ayame sounded apologetic. "We'll make you extra beautiful after we finish with them, okay? Don't run off!"

"Okay." Ayame and Suzume set to work on their bad-tempered, foul-mouthed, scowling nii-chans.

++++++

By the time Ayame and Suzume finished their task, most of the cosmetics Megumi had sent along had been smeared generously onto Yahiko and Sanosuke's faces, forming interesting lines as the makeup caked and hardened. The little girls had seemed pleased enough with the results of their hard work though, and instructed the two spiky-haired boys that they weren't to wash off their faces until they (the girls) went home. Misao's gleefully brandished kunai backed them up. Needless to say, the boys were not amused.

Soujirou had kept busy doing chores around the dojo while he waited, privately hoping the girls ran out of things to use after seeing what had happened to Sanosuke especially. Perhaps he should've taken the opportunity to run after all. Even as he considered it, he knew it was too late as Ayame and Suzume ran up to drag him away for his turn to be "beautiful." Luckily for him the girls had used up most of their arsenal on Yahiko and Sanosuke, which made the amount they applied to his face an almost normal level – if he were into that sort of thing, of course. Ayame had apologized for their lack, though he was, "almost as beautiful as Ken-nii, so it's okay." He really wasn't sure what she had meant, but the oddity of having the girls playing with him in the first place was pretty strange.

That was one thing Soujirou still didn't understand about the people of the Kamiya dojo. Even as ill mannered as Yahiko and Sanosuke were, they still allowed the little girls mostly free reign. They even joined the girls in their play, acting in ways that most people would consider undignified or childish and totally inappropriate for adults. Their habitual chasing of each other, the insults, the teasing, the play with Ayame and Suzume, he knew that all of them were connected. He just wasn't sure how. Kaoru had said that insults, nicknames, and teasing were all part of being a family, but how would that explain the other things they did? Soujirou had a lot to ponder while he let odd things be applied to his face by clumsy little fingers.

"We're done!" Ayame looked pleased with herself.

"You're beautiful!" Suzume crowed. "More than Ken-nii!"

"Almost as much as Kaoru-nee!"

"Who's almost much as me?" Kaoru had come from the dojo in time to hear the last part. Ayame and Suzume ran to her and pulled her up to get a better look at their handiwork.

"Kaoru-nee! Look at Soujirou-nii! He's beautiful, right? We did good, right?" Soujirou had absolutely no idea what he looked like. He felt sorry for the women who had to wear the stuff all the time. It felt heavy and a bit itchy. However, he smiled gamely and was surprised to see Kaoru staring at him, blushing, when he opened his eyes.

The girls had somehow managed to apply most of the cosmetics correctly, aside from bright splashes of color on his cheeks, which made him absolutely sparkle when he smiled. He looked rather feminine he would later find out, as Sanosuke incessantly teased him behind his own scary mask of flaky, caked-on, incorrectly applied cosmetics. But for now…

"Sou-chan, you're so cute!" Kaoru's face took on the same little-girl quality that was so often seen on Misao, eyes getting big, hands fisted and arms flailing wildly in excitement. "Oooh! I wish that we had one of those camera thingy's… You're too precious!" Kaoru could resist no longer and enveloped him in one of her hugs. Her resistance to cute things was notoriously low.

"What's all the commotion about, Kaoru-san?" Misao stuck her head out of the doorway of the dining room. She spotted Soujirou. "Hey, did they finish Sou-chan? Lemme see, lemme see!" Kaoru let him go, only for Misao to pounce on him too. "Gosh he's cute!" Ayame and Suzume beamed with pride.

++++++

Megumi came to retrieve Ayame and Suzume after dinner, bringing along several boxes of homemade _anpan_ as a treat for the boys, as well as some for Aoshi and Misao to take home. Aoshi had briefly reappeared for the meal, but had returned to the dojo to continue his meditations. Misao suspected that one look at Sanosuke's ugly mug had sent him running, he was that scary, but Aoshi had been pretty much oblivious to the entire goings on at the dojo that day so she knew that he probably didn't know the reason why he was made up like that. He had left before anyone could really explain why.

Even though she had brought something of a peace treaty, Megumi was not above milking the situation for everything it was worth. "Ara, is that you Rooster head? I could hardly recognize you, you being so _beautiful_ and all." Soujirou would later swear he saw fox ears pop out of her head as she laughed. "I know a tea house downtown that was looking for some help…"

Sanosuke banged his fist on the table. "Fuck you, Megitsune!"

"Ayame-chan and Suzume-chan did a wonderful job, I think. Are you sure you don't want me to ask about that job?" Sanosuke could only growl at her. "Oh, don't be that way Sanosuke. You don't want to hurt their feelings do you?" He looked down into the suspiciously watery eyes of the little girls and shook his head, biting his tongue against the string of curses that wanted to come out. Megumi laughed and told him to come by the clinic the next day for her to check his hand. She then made her obligatory pass at Kenshin, which Kaoru tried hard to ignore, and left, thanking them for looking after the girls that afternoon. Sano was not feeling charitable enough to escort them home.

As soon as the trio disappeared from view, Yahiko and Sanosuke made a beeline for the bathhouse. Sanosuke, by virtue of his longer legs, made it there first and locked Yahiko out. Yahiko, undeterred, began to beat on the door, and the two yelled curses back and forth to each other. Kaoru could only shake her head at her #1 student's stupidity. There was a pump and plenty of cloths in the kitchen with which to wipe the gunk off, which was where Soujirou had gone right away. There had only been so much girly-man teasing he would take. He wasn't Kamatari.

Maybe Yahiko just liked to argue. That was the only thing Kaoru could figure that made any sense.

"Kaoru-dono…" She started a bit at Kenshin's soft voice.

"Yes, Kenshin?"

"Would you like to watch the sunset with me?" Kenshin smiled at her, really smiled at her, and she could feel her face get hot and her knees get weak. _Damn, he has an amazing smile._ Kaoru nodded.

"Yes." Kenshin offered her his arm, which she took, and they set off in the direction of the river. Kaoru gave a small wave to Misao as she passed by, getting a knowing grin and thumbs up in return, as she and Kenshin walked off.

"Huh? Where are Himura-san and Kaoru-san going?" Soujirou had reappeared from washing his face, looking much more masculine instead of feminine and cute. Sanosuke had finally opened the door to the bathhouse and was arguing with Yahiko about who should go get fresh water from the well. He looked pretty comical with his hair spiked out in every which way and half of his face clean, the other half runny.

"To watch the sunset."

"Oh." Misao grinned as she looped an arm around him and drug him away.

"C'mon and help me clean up dinner. I could use the company."

+++++

Kenshin and Kaoru didn't speak as they walked to the river, a site of many important memories to both of them. It was late spring, just weeks away from the sweltering humidity and heat of summer. Kaoru would be turning twenty soon. When she was young she had dreamed of being a bride by that age, though circumstances had changed considerably since she was a child. She and Kenshin walked in companionable silence together, content in each other's company. 

_It feels so _right_ to walk along the road with him. _Kenshin was always so considerate when it came to her welfare. He even modified the stride his curious shuffling walk to make it easier for her in geta and kimono to keep up. Kaoru idly wondered why Kenshin made so much noise as he walked around normally.

This road held so many memories for her. Some were happy, some were bittersweet, and some were painful. Kaoru sincerely hoped that this little walk with Kenshin would turn into one of the happy ones. The quietness of the outside was a welcome break from the chaos that normally reigned within the dojo, putting her in an almost reflective mood.

The spot Kenshin chose to stop at was picturesque; a favorite place of hers to "Hana-mi." The sun sparkling over the horizon caused the river to reflect its brilliant colors. She tilted her head back to admire the sky, from orange and pink at the horizon, to a beautiful lavender color (that she secretly thought matched Kenshin's eyes), to the darker blues of the coming night. Kaoru loved sunsets.

"Kaoru-dono…" Kenshin had spent most of his time admiring Kaoru's changing expressions throughout their walk. She always looked so relaxed and comfortable when it was just the two of them together.

"Yes, Kenshin?" Kaoru leaned her head on his shoulder, not taking her eyes off of the sky, as she answered.

"I was wondering if…" Kenshin cleared his throat a little. The Rurouni was definitely in charge.

Kaoru turned her head so she could look up at Kenshin's face. There was just a hint of blush on his face beneath his bangs, though it might have been a reflection of the last of the sunlight from the river. "Hmm?"

"…If it would be permissible to call you 'Kaoru' when we're alone…" Kenshin had been looking steadily ahead when he asked, though when he darted a sideways glance at Kaoru he realized that she had been looking at him instead of at the sunset. She could feel the blush on her face, and knew that everything she felt for him was visible in her smile.

"Of course it's okay." Kenshin smiled at her too, and put his arm around her shoulders. They watched as the last of the sun disappeared beneath the horizon, changing the gradation of colors in the sky yet again. It felt right to stand next to Kenshin.

"Let's go home… Kaoru." She nodded as they turned around to go back to the dojo. He kept his arm around her. She didn't protest.

This was definitely one of the happy memories.

+++++

Soujirou and Misao had long finished the dishes by the time Kaoru and Kenshin got back, sitting on the porch outside enjoying the pleasant evening weather while Misao chattered energetically about everything that came to mind. Kenshin had stopped holding Kaoru as they approached the dojo, though they still walked side by side, close together. Sanosuke and Yahiko had quit trying to kill each other and joined the other two on the porch. Aoshi was still meditating somewhere, to the best of anyone's knowledge.

"Aa! Kaoru-san, Himura, welcome back! Sou-chan and I finished the dishes for you!" Misao waved enthusiastically from her seat on the porch.

"That was very kind of you, Misao-dono." Kenshin smiled as Misao beamed back him, looking very much like Ayame and Suzume earlier.

"Anyway, why don't you guys join us? Unless you have chores or something…"

Kaoru shook her head and went to sit down, bringing Kenshin along. Misao and Soujirou scooted over to let Kaoru and Kenshin sit down on the same section of porch as them. Sanosuke elected to stand on the other side of Misao, leaning against a post and gnawing on a fishbone, while Yahiko sprawled on his own section of porch on the other side of Kenshin.

Misao was about to launch into one of her silence-killing monologues when Soujirou broke the silence. "Kaoru-san, I've been meaning to ask you since this afternoon but…"

"Hmm?"

"Why do you all play with Ayame-chan and Suzume-chan so seriously?"

"It's fun."

"Is that the only reason?"

"No." Soujirou waited for her to continue, but she didn't say anything for several minutes. Instead she did one of the breathing exercises he recognized from practice and moved closer to Kenshin.

"I'm sorry, I don't…"

"Playing with Ayame-chan and Suzume-chan is like getting a little bit of our childhood back." Kaoru reached out and held Kenshin's hand. If she held onto Kenshin, then everything would be okay. Her eyes took on a vague, introspective look. "We were all born before the Revolution. Times were uncertain and often violent. We were forced to grow up before our time." They waited as she gathered her thoughts. Kaoru, despite her age and experience, really was the best at explaining complicated concepts like family. 

"When I was Ayame-chan's age my mother died." Kaoru moved closer to Kenshin. "I don't have very many memories of her, but in the ones I do have, I remember her as being gentle and ladylike. She was tiny compared to my father. Genzai-sensei later told me that her size had made pregnancy difficult, that it was a miracle that I was born.

"More than anything my father wanted a son. He was so unhappy that I had been born a girl. That's why he named me 'Kaoru.' It's a name that can be used for both boys and girls, and if he couldn't have a son in body, he wanted one in spirit. So that's what I became.

"After my mother died, my father started teaching Kamiya Kasshin Ryu. He never remarried, so I never had another woman to try and emulate. He started teaching me kenjutsu the day after the funeral, and I ran around in gi and hakama until I was twelve. I was told that it would be my duty to pass on his sword style. From the time he started teaching me, I was no longer allowed to be a child. No more _Hina Matsuri_. No more playing with Emiko-chan next door. Because I was a girl, and because I was his daughter, I had to be ten times better than any of the other students." Kaoru indulged herself in a shaky laugh.

"That's why I'm a crazy, bokken-wielding, Raccoon girl now. I'm never going to get back all that time I lost, but I decided after my father died that as long as I'm responsible for the dojo I should be who I want to be until I got married.

"So, why shouldn't I play with Ayame-chan and Suzume-chan on their level? They were both born to Meiji. They should never have to know how painful childhood could be. And it gives me a chance to experience through them how it could have been. Besides… everyone else, including you I bet, has had a worse childhood than mine. That's even more reason to enjoy playing now."

"I never knew all that, busu." Sometime in the middle of Kaoru's story, Yahiko had sat up and began listening attentively. His insult lacked the usual venom.

"I never told you guys?"

"Nope."

"Hmm." Kaoru considered that for a little while. "I would have told you if you asked." For a group of people with as many secrets as the occupants of the Kamiya Dojo, Kaoru's openness was refreshing.

"Ne, Kaoru-san…" Soujirou had been mulling over Kaoru's words. "You're right when you said that I had a bad childhood too…" Kaoru didn't move from her position pressed up against Kenshin, but was still able to reach out with her free hand to pat him comfortingly. When he looked at her, she smiled encouragingly. Misao mirrored Kaoru's actions, and suddenly Soujirou felt very safe. Whatever he said to these people would go no farther. Whatever he said to these people wouldn't shock them or turn them away.

"When I was just a little bit older than Ayame-chan…" he began softly, "I met Shishio-san."

++++

To be continued…!

++++

  
**Author's Notes: **

#1 – This sort of makeup probably didn't exist 120 years ago, but let's just pretend, ne. ^_^; Also, as much as I'd like to take credit for it, this "beauty" idea was inspired by a splash page of Yahiko in one of the doujinshi I have… He's really adorable, but totally pissed. ^^;

#2 – "Anpan" is a type of Japanese bread stuffed with sweet red bean paste. It's super tasty. "Hana-mi" is the Japanese tradition of cherry blossom viewing. In spring most Japanese people who live near the flowering trees will troop out to go drink beer and have a party with family and friends underneath them. The purpose is to admire one of nature's wonders.

#3 – I'm sorry if the Kaoru/Kenshin scene didn't come off as well as it sounded (or played out) in my head. O.o; I really _do_ think that dropping the –dono is a big deal…

#4 – I don't remember ever reading about the details of Kaoru's mother's death, so I just made them up. ^^; If there is an "official history" then I am claiming AU protection. ::hides:: "Hina Matsuri" is the Girl's Day celebration.

**Random Omake: **_A Hunk of Burning Love_

No dialogue this time, I'd just like to leave you with an image. Imagine Aoshi with sideburns wearing a white, rhinestone-encrusted 70's-style jumpsuit, complete with cape and over-sized belt buckle. He's singing "Burning Love." If the thought of Aoshi-as-Elvis leaves you either giggling (like me) or scared (or scarred, for that matter… O.o;), I have done my job. ^_^

**Review Response: **

**XP-DarkAngel**: Thanks for the compliment! Sano and Megumi can be together, I suppose, but most of their interaction would have to take place away from me. ^^;; I find Megumi to be incredibly hard to write... 

**Chiruken**: Thanks for reviewing again. ::uber hugs:: Misao thanks you for calling her "cute." ^_^; I'm glad that she isn't too annoying... she has somehow become a crazed version of her original self, one of my friends, and Ayame Sohma (from Fruits Basket). I'm aiming for more "family interaction" with Sou-chan in these coming chapters. ^_^; 

**Shihali**: Pure WAFF? ::uber hugs:: Whoo-hoo, I'm actually doing something right!! Aoshi isn't mad at Sou-chan because he has something of a Kenshin-complex right now. ("Soujirou was but a tool I used for my own self-destructive behavior") Megumi showed up again this chapter! ^^; Forgive me if she doesn't appear too often though, as I find her incredibly intimidating. 

**Jen**: Nope, this is definitely Ken/Kao. ^^; Sorry to disappoint you. Thanks for the Aoshi information too~~ I'm terribly regretting selling my manga set.... 

**Sandy**: ::uber hugs:: Thanks for reviewing again. I'm working on the "ticking-off-Aoshi-sama" scenario now, since I found Aoshi loitering inside the dojo smoking with Saitoh... O.o; 

**Lord Cirenmas**: Mwah! Thanks!

**Silver Goddess**: Thanks for your review! I'm continuing now. ^_^ 


	7. It's Now or Never

**Patchwork Family** Chapter Seven – "It's Now or Never"

**Author:** sayochama

**Rating:** PG13 (for Sano's potty mouth) ***EXTREMELY LIBERAL USE OF THE F*** WORD AHEAD***

**Disclaimer:** Rurouni Kenshin does not belong to me, no matter how many dollars I sacrifice to the mad doujinshi fairy. I also don't own any of the chapter titles (those are Elvis songs, by the way). They belong to someone else. I just listen to the King as I write, that I do. O.o

**Thoughts** are in _italics. _***WAFF warning***

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"When I was just a little bit older than Ayame-chan…" he began softly, "I met Shishio-san."

++++++

There were no indrawn breaths or sounds of shock from the others. Misao and Kaoru, who were on either side of him, radiated warmth and caring, while the boys maintained a steady, supportive, encouraging presence. _This is a bit…odd… I couldn't tell Kaoru-san before, but now… I want to tell her. I want to tell them. It's fair, isn't it? They've given me so much and haven't asked for anything. I've taken so much… and… it feels right to tell them. _

"I was illegitimate… My father was a rich rice merchant. He already had three grown-up children by his wife. My mother was his mistress. She died when I was small and I don't remember much about her. While he was alive, I wasn't treated badly but…" He drew in a shaky breath. His mask was beginning to crack. He could feel all those long-repressed emotions begin to boil again underneath his skin.

"Before he died, he made his wife promise to look after me… and after he died… after he died…" It was all coming back to him. The cruel taunts. The vicious kicks. Every single thing he had ever suffered at the hands of his "family," his "blood." He struggled to keep his composure, to keep his pleasantly smiling mask in place. It was a losing battle. _It's in the past. I **know** they can't do anything like that to me ever again. _

"They hurt me." Those three words seemed so inadequate to describe everything he had suffered yet they managed to convey so much about what he had gone through. He couldn't look at the others. Hot tears burned his eyes, his chin quivered ever so slightly. His smile slipped. He was so ashamed of himself, of his weakness.

Misao desperately wanted to pull him into her arms and hug him until he turned blue. In fact, she was reaching over to do so when she glanced up at Kaoru, who shook her head at her. "Wait" Kaoru mouthed at her. She nodded slightly to show she understood, and settled on squeezing his hand slightly.

"That's when I began to smile." Soujirou's voice was hoarse and whispery. "They wouldn't hurt me as much when I didn't cry." Yahiko growled softly and smacked his fist into his palm. He knew _exactly_ what that was like, having spent years with Yakuza men who thought nothing of beating a child, or a woman, for fun. His mother had protected him until she died, but after that he had been fair game. He had been defiant instead of smiling, something that would have gotten him killed eventually if not for Kenshin and Kaoru. _I finally have something besides Kenshin in common with the Kappa. _Soujirou remained lost in his memories.

"One day, after one of my half-brothers ordered me to move all of the rice bails from one store house to another by myself I heard screaming from the street." His eyes were bright and his face was slightly flushed in the moon and lamplight, but his chin had stopped quivering. His voice was still the same though. "When I went to look, I saw this hideous bandaged man slicing policemen in half." Kaoru mentally shuddered at that gruesome image. She could hardly imagine such a thing. "I was so afraid that he would kill me too…but my smiling seemed to confuse him." _I was so scared I wet my hakama._

"He would let me live, if I got him bandages and food. So I did, and let him into the warehouse to stay for a while." Kenshin began to remember all of the cryptic comments that Soujirou had screamed at him during their last fight in Kyoto. _"Why didn't you protect me? You should've protected me!"_ At the time Kenshin had used Soujirou's unbalanced state against him, as Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu was based on reading an opponent's ki, not knowing or particularly caring about whom the comments were actually directed to. He had just wanted to get the fight over with, so he could fight Shishio and go home to his Kaoru-dono. But now… Kenshin was a lot of things, but he was never stupid.

"I hid him for a few days before they became suspicious. During that time he taught me, 'The strong survive and the weak die.' He gave me his old wakazashi." Soujirou managed a weak, bitter laugh. "My first sword. I thought that he was a good man and would protect me." _Why didn't you protect me? You should have protected me. _"It was raining the night they found out I was hiding him." _Why didn't you protect me, Shishio-san?_

"The night they found out I was hiding him was the first time I made the rain bleed." Soujirou waited for Misao and Kaoru, his two favorite people, to push him away in revulsion. He waited for Sanosuke and Yahiko, his almost-brothers, to curse him for the demon he was. He waited for Kenshin, his idol, to tell him he was unredeemable. Even Kenshin, as Hitokiri Battousai, hadn't killed anyone until he was a teenager. He waited, inwardly cringing, outwardly smiling sadly, as he gazed up into the night sky. He waited.

But Misao and Kaoru didn't push him away. If anything they looked like they wanted to hold him close and protect him from everything. Sanosuke and Yahiko didn't curse him, which would be hypocritical considering whom they viewed as a father/older brother figure and who they considered valuable (if obnoxious) allies. Yahiko had even crept up closer to the main group, settling down behind Kaoru with a clear view of Soujirou's face. And Kenshin… Suddenly all the pieces were falling into place, and, more importantly, he understood _exactly_ what "making the rain bleed" meant. 

Soujirou wasn't paying attention to any of that though. He was just waiting. _Even though Kaoru-san keeps telling me the past doesn't matter to her, she never knew the details. I'm evil. Ever since I was a child…They'll understand… but will want me to go. I would want me to go._

"They were going to hurt you, weren't they Sou-chan?" Kaoru's voice was calm, but fine tremors were beginning to shake her hands. Kenshin could feel the change in her ki, the stiffening of her body, and the deceptive calmness that only occurred when Kaoru was truly and completely outraged about something. Soujirou flinched slightly at her words. "They did hurt you that night, didn't they?" Her palms itched. She wanted Darling and a portal into Hell so she could go beat the hell out of those poor excuses for human beings that called themselves Soujirou's benefactors. She didn't wait for a response. "And that bastard Shishio probably watched everything from the shadows like the evil monster he was, not caring if an innocent child lived or died." If Shishio weren't already dead, she would have killed him. Gladly. Scratch that. She wanted that portal into Hell so she could make him feel the pain of death a second time. She swore softly under her breath.

Soujirou was shocked to hear rougher language coming from Kaoru. While her personality was volatile, most of Kaoru's insults were pretty tame. Perhaps all that time with Sanosuke was rubbing off on her. "They said that they… they would…kill me…That I was garbage. That I didn't deserve to live anymore." The old hurts were reopened and Soujirou felt tears burning his eyes again. "They kicked me and hit me and yelled at me and…and… I…"

Misao, who couldn't hold herself back anymore, threw her arms around his shoulders in a fierce hug. She buried her face in his shoulder and gave in to the tears that had been threatening to overwhelm her ever since he had started talking. Misao had been protected her entire life, first by her parents, then by Hannya and the others, and finally the members of the Aoiya. Nothing bad had ever been allowed to happen to her. Even when she had set out after Aoshi when she was fourteen, she knew that somehow someone was looking out for her. Compared to the others, even Yahiko, from what she could gather, had had a tougher life than she had.

"Misao-san, are you crying?" She nodded miserably into his gi. "Please don't… I'm having enough trouble trying not to myself…" Misao clutched him closer.

"Then cry with me, stupid." Soujirou gave a watery laugh and rubbed the back of his head, as was his wont when embarrassed.

"Shit." Sano smacked the post he had been leaning against, not hard enough to damage it but hard enough to get everyone's attention. "Oi! Stop crying and carrying on like a moron, Weasel girl. The kappa hasn't finished his story yet." Misao, without looking up, waved a fist in Sanosuke's general direction while making a rude gesture before going back to squeezing Soujirou. "There's no need to be rude now. He can't continue with you blubbering all over him." He heard her mumble something that he couldn't quite catch, but decided to let it go. "Aw, hell."

"It's alright Sanosuke-san. I can continue." Sanosuke had bought him the few moments Soujirou needed to once again try and compose himself. "They kicked me and threatened me, so I ran." He took a shaky breath. "One of them found me underneath the house. I had the wakizashi and… and… he yelled… and I…. I don't know what I did, but he screamed and I was running again and they cornered me and it was raining…" His voice broke. _Where were you, Shishio-san? Were you hiding in the shadows as Kaoru-san thinks? Why didn't you protect me?_

"Fuck. That sure as hell sounds like self-defense to me." Soujirou looked up at Sanosuke, who was wearing his characteristic "don't-fuck-with-me-unless-you-want-to-chew-on-your-balls-instead-of-your-tongue" expression. He had to admit that Sano could be pretty intimidating when he wanted to be. "I bet those fucking money-grubbing slugs were yapping about some sort of reward from the government for that shit head Shishio too, weren't they?" He nodded, not that Sano was really paying attention to him. "Goddamn government is the source of all of our fucking problems, you know that Soujirou?" He blinked. Sanosuke hardly ever addressed him by name. "Their wars took away our parents and made each and every fucking one of us into the people we are today. They created Shishio, but when they were through with him they couldn't even dispose of him right. You know why? `Cuz they're fucking screw-ups, every single one of them. They would probably do just about anything to have Kenshin at their beck and call again so he can fix their stupid problems, if Jou-chan'd let them."

"Sano…" Kenshin's voice, while pleasant, held a definite reprimand. Sanosuke settled back against the post, mumbling curses.

"After defending yourself against your so-called relatives, you went with Shishio and began your training." While phrased as a question, Kaoru said it like a statement. At his soft confirmation, she continued. "In the years that followed, you learned enough to earn the nickname of 'Tenken' and become one of Shishio Makoto's most trusted men. You fought for Shishio, but you were dead inside." Kaoru offered the now semi-shocked Soujirou a crooked smile, earlier outrage evaporating. She was going to show her family a little bit of Kamiya Kaoru that she guarded closely.

"At least until you fought Kenshin the first time. Then you started to live again. Your internal voice began screaming at you that what you were doing was wrong. You weren't doing anything for the right reasons, or reasons that you truly believed in. You desperately wanted to prove that you were right, that your perception of what strength was right, but you had an example in Kenshin of what true strength was. Your mask began to crack just like your sword." Soujirou was about to interrupt when Misao put a hand over his mouth to keep him quiet. He was surprised, but settled back down.

"That just proves that you aren't evil. People can only be helped when they themselves want and accept the help, even if they don't recognize it at first. Kenshin wants to help everyone, which is one of the reasons why we all love him so much," she squeezed Kenshin's hand as she said this, "but it's also one of his more annoying habits that's always getting him beaten up and left at death's front door." Kenshin didn't protest, as she was totally correct. "Not that I'm much better, what with my constantly growing collection of strays and such, but we're both rather odd when you think about it." The two of them laughed. Yahiko just looked disgusted. 

"Kenshin bothered you because you realized that he could see straight through you, into the part of you that you didn't like so much because of its weakness. When you fought him the second time in Shishio's fortress, this is how he was able to get through to you. After your fight, you were able to change your perceptions about right and wrong and about strength. You became someone admirable. Now that you're here, you aren't alone anymore." Kaoru finished with a flourish that included everyone in her little family. Everyone who was looking at her rather oddly.

"Kaoru-san, how do you know so much about me?"

Kaoru grinned. "Didn't I tell you that first night that I knew enough about you that I wanted you to stay?"

"Yes… but…"

"As hard as it is for some people to believe, I have perfectly good deductive reasoning skills and a sound mind – stop looking at me like that Sano, or do you want to have a nice chat with Darling – so doesn't it make sense that I have some things figured out?"

"Still…"

"Besides, I listen to everyone. Misao-chan, Sanosuke, Megumi-san, Kenshin, even Kamatari-san and Chou-san had something to say about you. It's not as if I haven't had time in the past few months to think about stuff like this. Now that I know you and heard some of the details, it all makes sense." She reached out and settled his head against her shoulder, catching Misao in her impromptu embrace. "Now cry." She commanded.

He did. All of his defenses came crashing down in a rush and he truly couldn't stop himself. Yahiko and Sanosuke were distinctly uncomfortable with the scene and discreetly sidled away, each digesting the content of the night's conversation. Misao, who had believed herself "all cried out" found that she still had tears left and clutched at the other side of Kaoru. Kenshin really wasn't sure how he felt about the familiar way Kaoru handled Soujirou, but decided to trust in her superior judgment about what people needed.

Kaoru was just happy that Soujirou had obeyed when she told him to cry.

++++

Where was Aoshi during all of these revelations? Why wasn't he included in the big WAFF festa on the porch? In fact, why hasn't Tsubame shown up to pursue her crush on Sou-chan? Is Kaoru truly capable of killing with her cooking? And what's this, Aoshi in an apron? O.o; All these questions and more are answered next time. To be continued…!

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Author's Notes

#1 – I did go back and re-watch the Soujirou/Kenshin fight a little while ago, so I'm pretty sure my interpretation of his history is fairly accurate… O.o;; For some reason Soujirou reminds me of Jane Eyre. What would a RK version of Jane Eyre be like, anyway? Hrm. Maybe I'm off on a wild tangent again. Also – I'm a bit nervous about how I describe Soujirou describing his past… I had to talk about something traumatic recently (though nothing **nearly** as bad as him), so I tried to magnify my feelings of that time and apply them to him to make it a bit more authentic, if that makes any sense. ::wrings hands::

#2 – Sorry about the shortness of the chappie. I didn't think it was appropriate to swing suddenly into a lame attempt at humor after all the important waff-y things that just happened. ^^; 

#3 – I truly didn't mean for Kaoru to become some sort of all-seeing goddess (or amateur psychologist), just to suggest that she has a more reflective, calm, good-at-deductive reasoning, very maternal, side to her personality that she only lets out every once in a while. ^^; Let's consider (a) how much time Kenshin spent flat on his back recuperating from his various battles _after _Kyoto, (b) the time that Kaoru felt it necessary that she watch over him, and (c) what she did in that time. O.o;

Review Response

Allyssa - ^_^;; I hope you read Ch. 6 when it finally did show up on Saturday. ^^; Thanks for actually reading my LJ. ^_^;;

april-moon - I giggled all through writing that part of the chapter (though, Aoshi-as-Elvis is guaranteed to send me into a fit of giggles every time I think about it... ::snicker::). I did my best to pack it full of everything, and I'm truly relieved that it was pretty successful. 

chris - I think, like Sano, Kaoru doesn't get enough credit for being smart sometimes. ^^; I'm glad Sou-chan is fitting in well too. ^_^; It means that I'm doing something (though I'm not sure what) relatively correctly. 

Silver Rune - You actually like my attempts at humor? O.o;; I'm so glad. Most of the time people just smile, nod, and back away slowly. ::uber glomps:: Sou-chan with make-up is actually really, really, really pretty. ^^; I saw a doujinshi cover once of him and Kamatari all made up like girls and he was quite cute. ::sigh:: Who loves bishies? ::waves hand around::

Chiruken - ::glomps:: I didn't completely fail in my attempt of KxK interaction? Gyah! Ureshii. Thanks for reviewing, as always. 

TawnyBaka - ::does a happy dance:: And here I constantly worry about how crazy Misao gets... Thanks!! ^_^ 


	8. Wooden Heart

**Patchwork Family** Chapter Eight – "Wooden Heart"

**Author:** sayochama

**Rating:** PG13 (for Sano's potty mouth)

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but a pile of pretty doujinshi and a burning love for Rurouni Kenshin. Please don't sue.

**Thoughts** are in _italics. _

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"Do you think you'll be okay now?" Kaoru asked softly into Soujirou's hair. His shoulders had stopped shaking quite so badly and his sniffles were decreasing in volume and frequency. The storm was passing. She absently rubbed his back the way her mother used to when she was little. _I know you'll be okay. The first step in healing is to let others reach out to you, which you learned much more quickly than Kenshin. _

Soujirou didn't answer right away, unwilling to leave the safety and warmth of Kaoru's embrace. What few hazy memories he had of his mother felt like Kaoru. _Comfort. Safety. Love. That's really what Kaoru-san offered me when she brought me home. Home…?_ He could hear Misao softly sniffling still, though Kaoru was no longer holding her.

"Sou-chan?" He reluctantly pulled away from her and rubbed at his eyes with his sleeve, sniffing as he tried to regain his composure.

"I'm going to be okay." Soujirou offered his first truly genuine smile to them that shined brightly even in the dim light of the paper lamps. "I'm sorry… your kimono…"

"Kimono can be replaced." _People can't. _Soujirou gave up trying to apologize for something Kaoru obviously didn't care about.

"It's getting late." Kenshin said softly as he got up and stretched. "Perhaps we should all get some rest." There were murmurs of agreement from his companions as they began to stir themselves from their sitting positions. Satisfied that everything would be all right, he began his nightly ritual of checking the dojo.

Soujirou was rubbing the back of his head again. "If you'll excuse me… Good night, Kaoru-san, Misao-san." The girls waved to him as he walked back to his room. Misao waited until he was out of earshot before starting.

"Ne, Kaoru-san… can I talk to you for a few minutes?" Kaoru blinked at Misao's earnest expression, before nodding and smiling again. _Well, isn't this the night for confessions? _

"Of course. You can talk to me any time."

"I'm glad." Misao grinned at her before turning her attention to the shadows beyond the little lamp's light. "Something was bothering me about what you said earlier…"

"About what, Misao-chan?"

"Why did you decide to be yourself only until you got married? Wouldn't it make more sense to be yourself all the time?"

"Hmm… that's a hard question…" It was Kaoru's turn that night to wait a few moments before responding. "At the time I decided that, marriage seemed really far away. Besides, with my father dead my prospects were pretty limited, and I had enough trouble trying to keep the dojo running those first few months."

"That wasn't an answer." Misao pouted and Kaoru held up her hands in a placating gesture vaguely reminiscent of Kenshin.

"I think I've always half-expected to never marry." This confession was said in such a small voice that Misao wasn't sure if she heard right.

"Huh? Why?"

"I don't follow any of the ideals of the good wife. I can't cook and I don't enjoy taking care of the house. I have a nasty temper. I know how to use Darling, and am unafraid to. I've never been graceful. I was raised basically as a boy… Why would anyone want to bother with someone as crazy, violent, and useless as me? As long as I had the dojo I thought I didn't have to worry about things like that." She sounded resigned as she listed her faults.

"But…but…but…Kaoru-san…" Misao had made an effort to subdue her outbursts during Soujirou's more serious discussion, but this was her best friend's self-esteem they were now discussing. "You're so GIRLY!" That got a surprised giggle out of Kaoru.

"You really think so, Misao-chan?"

"Of course. You're tons more girly than me. You can even fight in a kimono." Obviously that skill had impressed the tomboy-ish Misao the most. "If I were I man, I would marry you in a hot second. I don't know what's wrong with Himura."

Kaoru did her best to suppress the laughter that would be sure to disturb the other residents of the dojo. She reached out and pulled Misao into a hug, which was enthusiastically returned. "Oh Misao-chan, I feel the same way about you." The girls indulged in quiet giggles as Misao said her thanks. "Besides, Misao-chan, you're plenty cute and feminine too. I should be the one saying 'I don't know what's wrong with Aoshi-san.'"

"That's the problem though."

"Hm?"  
  


Misao pulled away from the hug and crossed her arms over her chest. "Aoshi-sama hardly acts like he notices me most of the time. I'm always talking or laughing or joking and trying to get him to respond to me, but he hardly says three or four sentences to me a day." Her face was uncharacteristically somber. "Maybe I'm nothing but a bother to him." The little wheels of deductive-reasoning Kaoru's mind began to turn, formulating a plan.

"I think he must care about you though, otherwise why would he come with you all the way to Tokyo? It's a long way, but you're old enough to travel alone."

"He probably just wanted to make sure I didn't cause too much trouble for people. I'm always bothering him and making trouble." Misao was quickly becoming more and more morose as she thought about it. _Not good._

"Is that why you came for a visit?" _Maybe she wanted to see if she could use Kenshin and me as an example._

"Huh? To cause trouble?"

"No, no. Kenshin heard from Aoshi-san that you wanted to check on me. You wanted to see if Kenshin and I were engaged yet, didn't you?" Even in the inadequate lamplight she could see Misao was blushing as red as Kenshin's hair.

"Th-th-that's not it at all…! Well…maybe it's a part of it…a big part of it…no it's not! I was genuinely concerned about you and…" Misao waved her arms around as she became flustered. "How do you know things like that, Kaoru-san? It's not fair how you can just kind of come up with the right answers like that!"

Kaoru grinned and winked at her. "I'm your best friend, remember. I'm supposed to be able to tell things like that." Misao did her best "wounded-weasel-girl-pride" face. Kaoru patted her on the head. "Kenshin and I are coming right along, so don't worry about it. We'll come up with something for Aoshi-san while you're here too, okay?" Misao was already looking perkier.  
  


"Okay." 

++++

Kenshin efficiently began to organize everything he needed to make breakfast while he waited for Soujirou to appear, as had become their habit. The mundane chores of the dojo were one of the things that kept him sane, repetitive rituals that proved to him that no matter what happened, life went on. He was trying to impart this love of the mundane to Soujirou, though he was pretty sure that the younger man still didn't understand why completely. 

He was a bit distracted by the conversation he had overheard between Misao and Kaoru the night before, however, and unconsciously began preparations without really meaning to. '_If I were a man, I would marry you in a hot second. I don't know what's wrong with Himura.' Misao-dono is right. **I** don't know what's wrong with me._ The miso soup was already bubbling on the fire when Soujirou came into the kitchen, looking refreshed and genuinely happy. He had lost his over-eager puppy attitude overnight, replaced with that of a man confidant of his acceptance and welcome. 

"Good morning, Himura-san." He moved a little farther into the room. "Is there something I can help you with this morning?"

"Would you mind preparing the fish?" He gestured towards the fish he had bought the previous day.

"Not at all." Soujirou moved with assurance as he picked up the dish of fish and went to work at an open space on the counter. They worked in silence for a few minutes, enough time for Kenshin to get his mind back on track for this morning's lesson.

"This morning I thought we'd have a talk about why I'm teaching you to cook."

"Huh?" Soujirou looked up from the fish he was cleaning. "I thought you were teaching me a survival skill."

"Well, yes, but there is another dimension to it."

"Another dimension?"

"Did you do ordinary things like cooking or cleaning while you were with Shishio?"

"No…"

"Do you enjoy these chores now?"

Soujirou thought about his current life carefully. There were a lot of chores to do on a daily basis to keep the dojo running smoothly. It made him happy to think that the more he did for Kaoru and Kenshin, the less they would have to do later. He never enjoyed doing menial tasks as a child because they had been a source of punishment and pain, but the chores he did now were important to him. He didn't mind doing them and they did give him a chance to think while still doing something productive. The only thing he truly enjoyed in a "fun" sense was spending time in the kitchen using a blade to create, instead of kill.

"I like cooking. Why do you ask?"

"I was wondering if my method of centering myself would work for you."

"Method of centering yourself?"

"Like Aoshi uses meditation, I use cooking and the laundry. Some sort of repetitive task that you do to keep yourself, for lack of a better word, sane." Soujirou went back to cleaning the fish. He realized that Kenshin had been trying to teach him about the importance of daily rituals from the beginning. He just hadn't known the purpose. Now that he did, he wasn't sure what he used.

"I don't cook enough for that to be it," he mused aloud. "The only thing I've really done since I left Kyoto is try and help people."

"Helping people is enough for now. Habits like that develop over time."

"Really?"

"I hated doing things like this when I lived with my Master. But twenty years later the things I detested are some of the things that are most dear to me. It all depends on your perspective." The unspoken, but understood, portion of the statement was 'I'd prefer to be doing laundry than killing people.' That was something Soujirou could understand.

"So I still have plenty of time to figure it out?"

"It's not something you can really rush. One day you'll just realize it, which is the way it should be."

"Thank you, Himura-san."

"Don't thank me. What I told you is something you would have eventually figured out for yourself."

"I still appreciate it, though." They lapsed into a comfortable silence as they finished making breakfast.

They were almost ready to go rouse the other occupants of the dojo when Kaoru stuck her head in the door, smiling brightly. "Good morning, Sou-chan, Kenshin. I'm glad I caught you two."

"Oh, good morning Kaoru-san." He smiled at her before turning his attention back to the fish he was grilling.

"Good morning, Kaoru-dono." Kenshin looked at her strangely. _She's planning something in that beautiful head of hers._ It was odd for Kaoru to be up and about so cheerfully so early. "Why did you want to catch us?"

"I need you two to do some things for me today."

"Why?" Kenshin knew she would never hurt anyone, and hell, he knew that he'd probably do just about anything she asked him to do, but many of Kaoru's plans had a startling tendency to get off track. Hence the uncharacteristic questioning. She didn't seem to mind though, and positively beamed with excitement.

"I'm going to fix Aoshi today." Kenshin was glad he had put down the bowls he was going to serve the miso soup in when Kaoru had appeared, or else he was sure he would have dropped them at her announcement.

"Oro?"

"Shinomori-san is broken?" No matter how confident and comfortable Soujirou felt at the dojo, Kaoru would probably continue to say or do things that confused him until he was old and gray.

"Yeah, that's why he has to be fixed." _Ask a stupid question… Kaoru wants to further Misao-dono's relationship with Aoshi. So what does that have to do with us?_

"Oh…kay…" Clearly Soujirou had been expecting a more precise explanation but, really, what Kaoru thought only Kaoru, and sometimes Misao, understood.

"So what would you like us to do?" Kenshin decided to take pity on the younger man, who was beginning to look hopelessly confused.

"Do you think that Tae-san could use some extra help, Sou-chan?"

"Yeah… the lunch rush has apparently gotten really busy since I've started working that she said something about hiring someone…"

"Oh good. Do you think you can take Misao with you when you go to work today, then?"

"I don't think it'll be a problem."

"Yay!" and then, "Ne, Sou-chan, are you burning the fish?" Soujirou scrambled to recover what was fast becoming fishy charcoal. Kaoru quietly snickered behind her sleeve, comforted by the fact that Soujirou wasn't perfect either.

"What would you like me to do, Kaoru?" Kenshin pitched his voice so that only she could hear it, feeling it safe to drop the honorific while Soujirou was preoccupied with saving the remains of breakfast. Kaoru was glad she her face was already behind her sleeve, as she could feel the blush on her cheeks from the familiar address. She turned slightly to face Kenshin, to find him smiling at her in a way that wasn't Rurouni-like and definitely not Battousai-like, but undeniably Kenshin-like. _Oh Sou-chan. You're a sweet guy and fun to be around, but right now I really wish you would beat it._

Something in her expression must have betrayed her thoughts because Kenshin's shoulders shook with silent laughter. "Soujirou, perhaps you should go wake up Misao-dono and the others and tell them it's time for breakfast." Somehow Soujirou had managed to save most of the bits of fish, though some looked a little more burnt than was necessarily edible. He set those aside for himself. It was his fault after all.

"Okay, Himura-san." He left with a nod in their direction, apparently oblivious to Kaoru's embarrassed expression. He had a lot to think about, the most pressing being how to convince Misao to come to the Akabeko and leave Aoshi behind. Kenshin waited until he had disappeared down the hall before speaking again.

"You were saying?"

"Huh?" Kaoru had gotten distracted from her main purpose that morning by Kenshin's behavior, which caused her thoughts to go off on wild tangents.

"What you'd like me to do today."

"Oh. That. Ummm…" Kaoru mentally smacked herself. _Brilliant, Kaoru, just brilliant. Think of the good you'll be doing for Misao-chan. _"I need you to keep Sanosuke away from the dojo until dinnertime."

"By doing what?" Kenshin was enjoying Kaoru's distraction.

"I don't know. Take the day off. Have fun. Just keep him away from here all day, okay?" Kaoru recovered, focused on her goal of the day.

"Why are you sending everyone away from the dojo?" The thought of leaving her behind with only Aoshi around bothered him a little. While things had worked out the last time he had left her basically alone, it still galled him that he couldn't be around to protect her all the time. Especially since she was the one sending him away this time.

"I don't want any distractions." Kaoru made a gesture with her hands that he wasn't sure what to make of, but she seemed to be trying to find the right words. "What worked with you and Soujirou won't work with Aoshi-san. I can't just beat him with Darling and yell at him, not that I would anyway because he's just a little bit too intimidating, so I figured that if I tried a different approach that would be more successful."

"What kind of approach?" Kenshin was genuinely curious about how Kaoru would crack Aoshi's shell.

"I don't know. That's why I need you guys to stay away from the dojo today." _She has absolutely no idea of what she's going to do. _Kenshin smiled at her affectionately. This was the Kaoru he was used to dealing with, the one who had a tendency towards rash actions based on her good intentions. The Kaoru of the previous night was someone he hadn't met before, not that she was any less appealing than her normal self. It was almost scary to think about how much Kaoru really knew underneath her "crazy, bokken-wielding, Raccoon girl" persona. _Aren't we a pair? We both rarely show the real "us" to the rest of the world._

"Alright." He turned away and began preparing a tray to take out to the table. Misao's distinctive laughter, Yahiko's promises of retribution, and the sound of Sanosuke's swearing could be heard in the distance. _And another day officially begins at the Kamiya Dojo. _"We should take this out to—" Kenshin cut himself off as he felt Kaoru hug him from behind.

"You looked like you needed a hug…" was Kaoru's whispered explanation as she tightened her hold on him. "Thank you, Kenshin."

++++

"Where the hell are Ugly and Kenshin anyway? We can't eat unless they bring the food out." Yahiko grumbled to no one, obviously in a bad mood. He had been having the nicest dream until Soujirou had slid the door to his room open and unceremoniously dumped a bucket of water on him. It had been too late for Sanosuke to stumble home the night before, so he had crashed in Yahiko's room. Subsequently, the water aimed at Yahiko splashed onto the sleeping Sano as well. He and Sano, needless to say, hadn't taken kindly to their wake up and were sulking.

Misao was chattering to no one in particular, though most of it was aimed in Aoshi's general direction. Aoshi was looking off into space, quickly approaching a trance-state. Soujirou studied the pair for a few minutes before deciding he agreed with Kaoru's assessment of Aoshi. He really did look broken. _How am I supposed to get her to come to the Akabeko without him?_ His line of thought was broken as Kaoru and Kenshin appeared bearing trays filled with breakfast food and dishes.

"About time, Ugly! I bet the food's gotten cold too," Yahiko muttered nastily. Kaoru waited until she set the tray down before smacking him with Darling.

"Just for that, you have to share your fish with Sou-chan." That got Soujirou's attention.

"WHAT!"

"But I set aside my portion of the fish…"

"You mean those nasty little bits of charcoal? I threw those in the fire. Yahiko will be more than happy to share with you."

"I am not!" Darling was shoved into his face again.

"You are more than happy to share, especially because Sou-chan made the effort to cook breakfast with Kenshin." Seeing her expression, Yahiko decided to concede the battle and settled for mumbling insults under his breath. He grudgingly gave half of his portion to the kappa.

"But it's my fault that…"

"Here, you can have some of mine too." Kaoru separated a third of her own portion and plopped it onto Soujirou's plate.

"But…" 

"Let us do something nice for you." Her tone said, "don't argue with me." He didn't. Misao and Kenshin redistributed a portion of their share to Kaoru and Soujirou too. Yahiko, who was being punished, grumbled under his breath.

"Itadakimasu." Everyone chorused as they began to dig into their food. The normal mealtime conversation followed, though this meal was more interesting because Yahiko decided to steal the portion of food he gave away from Sanosuke, who was having none of it. The clack of their chopsticks hitting each other over the food, along with their accompanying argument, were most amusing.

"Ne, Sou-chan. I heard that Tae-san could use some help today." Soujirou looked at her for a few seconds in confusion before it registered that Kaoru was taking care of his problem for him.

"Huh? Oh… yeah! She said that she was thinking about hiring someone soon…" He rubbed the back of his head. "Even though I'm working for her now, she's still very busy."

"I'll help!" Misao raised her hand, still clutching her chopsticks. The rice she had been holding flew across the table and landed in Yahiko's hair. "I used to help Sae-san at the Shirobeko." She added, as though she needed to qualify her offer with previous experience.

"Oi!" Yahiko yelled, feeling the gooey grains land on his head. "Don't throw food you stupid weasel!" Momentarily forgotten, Sano reached over with his chopsticks and grabbed the biggest piece of Yahiko's remaining fish, which had been stolen from him originally. He grinned as he popped it in his mouth, making a big show of chewing and swallowing it. Yahiko noticed. "Oi! My fish!" 

Misao chose to ignore the two boys, who were once again engaged in a fierce battle of wills and chopsticks, instead concentrating on listening to Soujirou. "I'm sure Tae-san will be happy to have your help, Misao-san."

"Yahoo." She flashed her victory sign. "When are you and the brat leaving?"

"After Kaoru-san's morning classes."

"Ne, ne, Aoshi-sama, do you want to help too?" Kaoru and Soujirou glanced at each other nervously.

"No." Aoshi went back to calmly drinking his tea. The two let out silent breaths of relief, silently thanking Aoshi's anti-social nature.

"Oh…" Misao looked crestfallen for a few minutes before she determinedly perked up again. "Well, that's okay too. You are on vacation, so you should be doing something you like, right? Yup, that has to be it. I'm just a workaholic, you know, since I miss the restaurant…" Kaoru took the opportunity to start asking detailed questions about the welfare of their Kyoto friends.

+++++

The morning progressed normally from that point on. Yahiko sulked and grumbled until morning lessons, after which he looked much happier. Aoshi had disappeared directly after breakfast, probably to meditate again, and Misao had elected to watch Kaoru, Soujirou, and Yahiko teach lessons in the dojo. Kenshin, following Kaoru's orders, managed to convince Sano that he truly had no ulterior motive for dragging him away from the dojo _and_ that it was okay for him to be away from the dojo all day. They left shortly after breakfast. Lessons ended a bit later than usual, so directly after Soujirou, Misao, and Yahiko headed off to the Akabeko leaving Kaoru behind.

Kaoru took a deep, calming breath. _For all my talk, I have no idea how I'm going to "fix" that blasted Iceman. _She patted Darling unconsciously. _At least I know that most of my distractions are gone. Oh well. Here goes nothing…_

TBC…!

++++

**Author's Notes**

#1 – Sorry I lied. Aoshi in an apron is _next_ chapter. v.v;; I have a lot of trouble with Aoshi… probably because he's not one of my favorites (stupid emotionless ice man. Grr). And my apologies to the Aoshi fans… he's cool and all… but… yeah… I was happier when he flying somewhere over the Bermuda Triangle.

#2 – "Itadakimasu" is what people say before eating. It's like, "Thanks for this meal."

#3 – Dang, that was a lot of dialogue. Please excuse everyone's OOC-ness. ;

**Review Response**

Cat H - I'm glad you liked the Misao/Aoshi/Sou-chan interactions. ^_^;; ::mwah:: I want to be at the Akabeko and have either of those two serve me too... ^^;; 

Nezumi chan - Sorry, hon, this is K&K all the way! ^_^;; 

Sabbie - Nope. All of the titles are Elvis Presley songs from the "30 #1 Hits" album released last(?) year. ^^; It all started with the first two chapters, and it kind of grew from there.

elyssalyn - Eep! i'm sorry. here's the next chapter. only like, two to go. ^_^;; don't hurt me! ::glomps:: and thanks so much for your review!

Silver Rune - i'm writing a good sou-chan ficcie? score! ::hugs:: thanks for adding me to your favorites, and thanks for your review.

Chiruken - thanks!! (i really like "absosmurfly" too...) 

Jen - I'm glad you agreed with her characterization. ^^;; I worry sometimes that I make her out to be **too** understanding...

Celyia - I love your Sesshy/Kagome fics.... ::glomps:: I normally don't like Megumi much either (notice her constant absences?), but for some reason I like Fic!Megumi better. ^^; ::sigh:: your reviews were absolutely inspiring. Thanks. ^_^; ::uber blush::

chris - i'm glad someone else can see "Flaming Glory" Kaoru too. ^_^ whee! thanks. 

Sandy - i live for waff. ^_^ thanks! 


	9. You're the Devil in Disguise

**Patchwork Family** Chapter Nine – "You're the Devil in Disguise"

**Author:** sayochama

**Rating:** PG13 (for Sano's potty mouth)

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but a pile of pretty doujinshi and a burning love for Rurouni Kenshin. Please don't sue.

**Thoughts** are in _italics. "Italics with quotes" _are **Aoshi's feelings.**

+++++

_The Kamiya girl would have made a terrible ninja. _Aoshi reflected quietly in front of the tokonoma in the room he had been assigned. He had made his escape from the dining room as soon as Misao had begun chasing the brat, who had been chasing the semi-useless gangster. Figuring it was safer that way, he meditated in the room for most of the morning and early afternoon until his thoughts began to turn towards something of a more mundane nature.

_It was obvious that she was plotting something, and that Himura and the Tenken were in collusion with her. The question now is _what_. _Aoshi hadn't been elected as Okashira of the Oniwabanshu at age 15 for being oblivious. His eye for detail and relentless search for the truth had saved him and many others over the years. Just because he had more or less given up being an active member of the Oniwabanshu didn't mean that he had given up important skills for his own survival. _Especially because I have a terrible feeling that she's plotting something to do with _me_. Why do I follow Misao on these crazy, impulsive ventures anyway?_

_"…Because if something happened to her while she was supposed to be under your care, Hannya and the others would never forgive you, let alone yourself…" _A voice whispered in his head. "_Besides, your debt to Himura Kenshin can never be discharged. He's your friend." _

His eyebrow twitched as he violently tamped down on the voice of his emotions. He didn't need or want to think about debts and forgiveness; he needed to think of a way to escape the machinations of his hostess. She hadn't impressed him overly with her beauty, poise, elegance, or intelligence on the previous occasions they had met, but Himura had obviously seen something in her. _Not that I really understand why. _Aoshi's opinion of her _had _risen several notches after overhearing the conversation on porch with the Tenken though. He had chosen not to participate; at the time thinking it reeked of Himura's touchy-feely approach to dealing with people, instead keeping to the shadows behind a discreetly opened shoji screen. Himura had probably felt his presence, but hadn't called him on it. He had gone to bed shortly after Misao had stopped crying the last time with a funny feeling in the pit of his stomach.

_"You were jealous of the way she was throwing herself at the Tenken." _The traitorous voice gleefully sang in his head. "_And face it, dude, _you_ wanted to be the one that comforted her, not Kamiya." _

_Silence! _He took several calming breaths and focused on the scroll that was hanging in the tokonoma. _Probably because Kamiya doesn't know how to do Ikebana…_The scroll looked old, but was as well maintained as the rest of the house. _Which is due to Himura._ He studied the elegant lines of the calligraphy, not really reading the words, but using them as a guide to center his mind again. _I need to concentrate. First, why would Kamiya plot anything? Second, why would she plot something about me? Third, for what purpose does she do this for? _

_"(1) Her family. (2) Misao. (3) See number 2." _Promptly supplied the voice he was trying desperately to ignore. "_The same reasons you would do something." _

_I wish you would leave me alone so I could actually get something done. _Obviously meditation wasn't working anymore. Perhaps some light exercise in the dojo would help him clear his head. That decided, he got up and softly padded to the shoji, sliding it open only to come face to face with the woman he was trying to avoid. Kaoru had her hand up, fisted as if she were going to knock on the wood of the sliding panel before it suddenly opened. She smiled up at him.

"Hello, Aoshi-san. Do you know how to cook?"

+++++

"So, Kenshin, fess up! What's Jou-chan really up to?" Sano had enjoyed an unusual run of luck at dice that morning and as a result was in a very good mood. Kenshin, on the other hand, was somewhat distracted. They were walking through one of the nicer market sections of town.

"Oro? What gives you that idea?" Kenshin did his best "innocent Rurouni" face, not that it fooled Sanosuke in the slightest.

"Jou-chan's as transparent of water." He grinned. "And you two came in for breakfast together this morning." The grin changed into a leer as he elbowed Kenshin in the ribs. "Is something _finally_ going on between you two that the rest of us don't know about?"

"Shut up Sano." Kenshin said as pleasantly as possible. Sano's answering laugh was positively lecherous. He resisted the urge to smack the tall gangster.

"There _is _something going on. Spill." Kenshin sighed. Sanosuke could be positively tenacious when he wanted to be, especially when he thought the topic would be embarrassing for the person he was harassing.

"Kaoru-dono said that she was going to 'fix' Aoshi today." Sano guffawed.

"No, seriously, what's she up to?"

"Exactly as I said. Today's project is 'fixing' Aoshi."

"No shit?" He let out a low whistle. "Well, I guess if anyone can get through to the Iceman, it'd have to be either her or the weasel. So, what's that got to do with you?"

"I'm to keep you away from the dojo until dinner time."

"Oh." Sanosuke shrugged, apparently unbothered by the fact that Kaoru had wanted to get rid of him for the day. He was more interested in making Kenshin uncomfortable. "Was that _all_ you were talking about before breakfast?"

"No."

"Oh-ho? So there is something else going on."

"That's between Kaoru and myself…" Kenshin almost slapped a hand across his mouth as he realized his slip. Not only had he forgotten to add his customary honorific to Kaoru's name, he had completely dropped his normal Rurouni speech pattern. A sideward glance at Sano proved that it had not gone unnoticed, nor would it go unpunished.

"'Kaoru?' '_Ore_?'" Kenshin was the recipient of a health smack on the back, which sent him stumbling forward several steps. "Kenshin, you dog! Have you finally asked Jou-chan to marry you?"

Mentally cursing his stupidity, he sullenly muttered "No."

"What do you mean, 'No'? Why else would you drop the '-dono'?" If looks could kill, Sanosuke would have been happily dancing a jig with Sagara-taichou. "Don't tell me you've already done _that_ with Jou-ch—" This time Kenshin really did smack him. Hard. Sano went flying into a wall, thankfully in a spot unoccupied by a vendor.

"I _haven't_," He grit out through clenched teeth. Kenshin continued walking, at that point not really caring whether or not Sanosuke followed him or not. One thing that could be said about Sanosuke, though, was that he remained undaunted at the prospect of facing the wrath of some of the most skilled swordsmen in the country. He shook his head a few times to make the pretty stars in front of his eyes go away and then took off after his red-headed friend. Luckily Kenshin wasn't so angry as to use his god-speed to ditch him, but he had gained a fair lead.

"Oi! Damn it Kenshin, wait for me!" Sanosuke ran after him and, by virtue of his long strides, managed to catch up with him within a few minutes. "Look man, I'm sorry. I deserved that. I shouldn't have said something stupid like that and…" Kenshin studiously ignored him. "Shit! I said I was sorry. Why the hell are you acting all weird?" The swordsman suddenly stopped in the middle of the street, causing Sanosuke to bump into him. He took a few deep breathes before turning his head to look at his friend.

"I should apologize to you as well. We've all been under a certain amount of stress because of Soujirou and our guests." He turned to the front again and began walking, Sanosuke again beside him. 

Sanosuke pulled a fishbone out of his pocket and began chewing on it pensively. "Is the kappa boy really bothering you that much?"

"Discussing my relationship with Kaoru-dono bothers me."

"Jou-chan doesn't like him like that you know." Sanosuke blithely continued on, ignoring Kenshin's annoyed look. "Frankly, I think she treats him like some weird mix of you and Yahiko."

"Oro?"

"You know, like all the mothering shit she's been doing lately to Soujirou is probably something she's wanted to do for the brat since the beginning. He just wouldn't let her." Sanosuke could be incredibly perceptive and articulate when he wanted to be. "And I've seen how you look when she randomly hugs him. You get all annoyed `cause _you're_ Kaoru-dono is showing interest in a strange male."

"Who are you and what have you done with Sano?" This time it was Kenshin's turn to go flying into a wall.

"You fucking smart ass! I'm trying to help you here!"

"Ororo…" Kenshin rubbed the back of his head, sure that there would be a bump forming at any time. "Sorry Sano. I'm listening."

"Che. I'm not even sure why I'm bothering…" Sanosuke mumbled around his ever-present fishbone. "Look, we've established that you have no interest in life without her _and_ that Jou-chan would wait forever for your sorry ass because she loves you. Why don't you just marry her already and put both you out of your misery?"

Kenshin stared at him for a full minute before responding. "I'd ask who you were again…" he raised his hands up when Sano made to punch him again, "but I really don't want to be smashed into a wall a second time." Sanosuke backed down and glared. Kenshin got up and carefully began dusting his clothes off. "Thank you, Sano. I'm sure Kaoru-dono would appreciate how much you care about our happiness as well."

Sanosuke blushed, sputtering curses and insults to cover his embarrassment. He walked off in the direction of the working-class neighborhoods he was more comfortable in. "We got what, two, three hours until we can go back right? This money is burning a fucking hole in my pocket. Let's go harass Katsu or somethin'." Kenshin could only shake his head at his friend.

+++++

Somewhere between his room and the kitchen Aoshi realized that the unfamiliar voice in his head actually belonged to his emotions. The subtle changes in intonation and wording indicated different emotions were speaking. Inner Peace was the only emotion he could visualize with any clarity, ("_We have the best relationship" _it informed him) calmly drinking tea and sitting on a sturdy looking box. _Well, at least now I know what the voice…voices… are. I can ignore it._

He wasn't sure how exactly, but Kaoru had managed to drag him into the kitchen, stuff him into an apron, and set him to work cutting vegetables. "_Wow, she's good," _this sounded like Admiration. Aoshi did his best to ignore it.

"Why do you act like you have a stick up your butt all the time?" Kaoru said conversationally as she set up her own pile of ingredients. Aoshi's head popped up and he turned to stare at her. _Did she just say what I think she said? "_That was a rhetorical question, by the way. I don't really expect you to talk to me." She continued, carefully handling a block of tofu as she put it down on her cutting board.

_She did say it. _Anger, Surprise, and Admiration all warred for his attention. Surprise won. _"How can she say something that rude and expect to get away with it? Isn't she afraid of you?" _

"I think you need someone to talk to you like you're a human being for once. All I want you to do is listen." Aoshi made a move to remove his apron. Kaoru's Darling told him that would be a bad idea. "And cook." He glared at her, not that she noticed as she had returned to her own project, and returned to cutting up potatoes.

"I'm not afraid of you, you know." Anger welled up in him at her rudeness.

"You should be." Kaoru almost cut off several of her fingers at Aoshi's unexpected comeback. She blinked a few times before giggling and shaking her head.

"That's the spirit, Aoshi-san."

For his part, Aoshi was surprised that something so common and childish escaped him. _"Crazy, useless little girls shouldn't insult someone whose specialty is knives and short swords, especially in a place filled with them," _Anger muttered. _"Why, we ought to…" _

_"You mustn't!" _screamed a voice Aoshi didn't recognize right off. It had been a while since he had felt it. _"I have two words for you: Himura Battousai. Anything happens to her, something bad happens to us." _That had to be Self Preservation. It did have a point too.

_She's not worried about being insulting because she knows that if Himura even suspected I wanted to hurt her he would somehow find the strength to Amakakeru Ryuu no Hirameki my ass back to Kyoto, weak body or no. Not to mention what the Tenken would do. _He mentally shuddered at the images those thoughts conjured up. Aoshi was man enough to admit when he was outclassed. _It would also be a mistake to underestimate her. I've already done that, and look where it's got me. Trussed up in a frilly apron, chopping vegetables and following Himura's recipe for sure-fire tempura. I suppose the least I can do is listen. _

Kaoru was talking again, which Aoshi lent half his attention to. The other, more irrational, half of his attention was busily assigning mental images to his emotions. All of them looked like him, but had a specific expression. Anger had an expression similar to Sanosuke's, something that had never manifested itself outwardly. Surprise was pale, jumpy, and had huge eyes. Admiration carried around little white fans with red dots and had the odd habit of waving them around when he was making his presence known. Self Preservation was constantly watchful and carried a large mallet _"to override all other emotions_._" _

"I know that what worked with Sou-chan and Kenshin won't work with you. For starters, I can't even deal with you in the same way because what I feel for them and what I feel for you are so different." She was working hard on cutting the pieces of tofu into precise cubes. "I bet that all the touchy-feely stuff that Kenshin and I are so fond of probably makes you sick. So, when I decided to talk to you today, I had to think of a different approach. I'm apologizing right now for all the insulting things I'm going to say." Admiration was waving his fans around, and Understanding, who apparently spent a lot of time with Inner Peace, dawned on him.

"Somewhere along the line you, in your infinite wisdom, decided that it was your lot in life to be miserable. After that you had no problem with inflicting that state onto others without asking about their wants or desires. That's not self-sacrifice, that's selfishness and cruelty." Aoshi's full attention was now on her, potatoes and eggplant be damned. _That was never my intention. _

"I say this to Kenshin often enough, but I don't think anyone has ever really said it to you." Kaoru took a deep breath. "Aoshi, you're a moron. Accept it and get over it." Anger suddenly grew to be twice his normal size. _"Why the hell should we listen to this crap? The little girl needs someone to teach her a lesson!" _Self Preservation smashed him with his mallet.

"Why is it that all the men Kenshin defeated with his succession technique develop his self-esteem issues? Is there something about it that changes your way of thinking?" Kaoru shoved her tofu aside and began working on cutting up what appeared to be wakame.

_"Himura's succession technique was what freed me and many of the other positive emotions, as well as giving us the strength to do away with Uncertainty, Obsession, and Murderous Rage." _Inner Peace said from his box. _"So Kamiya is correct in her assumptions."_

"In any case, being stupid about some things is perfectly normal. It just proves you're human. Misao-chan still thinks that you make the sun rise and the moon glow." _So this is all about Misao. She could have been less insulting and roundabout about it. _Aoshi was feeling a bit peeved. Suddenly Darling was back in his face. "Why'd you quit chopping? We still have three more bags, as well as several shrimp, that we need to prepare yet. You can do two things at once, can't you?" Aoshi took several deep breaths as he let Self Preservation and Inner Peace marshal his other emotions back into place. He returned to his methodical cutting. _No wonder Himura and the Tenken enjoy this so much. Still, Kamiya is one annoying girl. How do they stand it? _

"Why are you doing this?" Kaoru wasn't outwardly surprised by Aoshi's sudden question this time. Her reply was actually very thoughtful and heartfelt.

"I can't _not_ do it," she said softly, gazing intently at the pile of cut up vegetables on her cutting board. "I have to at least try."

"Stop nosing into my personal affairs." Aoshi's response was cold, but a quick glance at Kaoru showed that she could sense his inner turmoil. _Something_ was going on and, for better or worse, she was going to see it through. She began dumping things into a pot to start simmering.

"I'll stop nosing into your life the day you convince Hiko Seijuurou to come off his damn mountain and visit us of his own free will." Aoshi unconsciously gripped his knife harder. _In other words, she'll stop when Hell freezes over. "Damn, annoying, raccoon," _Anger mumbled. _"Why can't she just say it like a normal person?" _That sounded like Annoyance or Impatience.

"Is that a threat?" _"Ha-ha! I got through!" _Anger cackled.

"No, it's a challenge." Anger was quickly replaced by Astonishment and Confusion, both cousins of Surprise. _"Where is she going with this?" _Confusion sounded, well… confused.

"You need goals, Aoshi-san. You're absolutely terrifying when you have a goal." She was stirring the pot now, pensively tasting it now and then to make sure it stayed edible. "You get all single-minded and obsessive. Kenshin said that you had an important goal during Jinchuu. He wouldn't tell me what it was, but it gave you something to focus on. That's good for the short term, I suppose, but what are you going to do with the rest of your life?" She began to carefully assemble ingredients for the tempura batter while keeping a close eye on her pot.

"If you want me to leave you alone forever, you'll have to figure out a way to convince Master Hiko to visit. In the meantime you should be thinking of some long term goals for yourself." _"Why would she want to see someone as disagreeable as Hiko Seijuurou?" _Confusion asked.

_"Because she's just that kind of person." _Admiration replied. Against Aoshi's better judgment, Admiration had become a fan of Kaoru. His mental image of the emotion changed accordingly. It still carried the little white fans with the red dots, but it also had a flag with a Raccoon head stitched on it and a matching hachimaki/haori set that were emblazoned with the words, "Kaoru-chan Fight!"

"Like being happy, for instance. That's a worthy life-long goal. I bet you have your Happiness locked in a box somewhere too, just like Kenshin, as if repenting for your sins also means that you have to be miserable. That's just stupid." Things continued in this vein but Aoshi mostly ignored it as his mind and emotions started an inner dialogue again.

_"She's right, boss." _Inner Peace, who had been sitting on said box, calmly informed him. _"I hear Happiness singing sometimes about rainbows and successful missions. Romantic Love and Humor are in there too, I think. Shall I let them out?" _

_Why are they in there? _

_"It's my job to suppress emotions until you are ready to deal with them. However, Happiness and Romantic Love have become disturbing to my mission. Just last week Romantic Love was banging on the side of the box demanding to know if I knew any words that rhymed with 'weasel' or 'eyebrows.'" _

_What makes you think that _I _want to deal with them? _

_"Look at it this way, boss. I'm going to have to let them out sooner or later. Now is just as good as any other time, better really because now you can blame your sudden change in attitude on Kamiya." _

_So I have to deal with emotions that are going to make me seem like a blithering idiot? _

_"No. We Emotions get filtered through you, the personality. So what you show is up to you. Self Preservation and Annoyance usually take care of the rest. And if all else fails, you can always lock them up again." _

_You don't seem to be filtered. _

_"That's just because I'm what your personality exists in normally. Everyone is like that. Misao is Happy, Kamiya is Compassion, and Himura is Self-Sacrifice." _Aoshi got a mental image of Inner Peace shrugging. _"But I'd really appreciate it if I could let them out. I have a hard enough time keeping all your Evil Impulses in check. I _don't_ want to deal with the arguments that Happiness and Romantic Love's incessant cheerfulness does to them by myself anymore." _

_I thought that Romantic Love was supposed to destroy one's Inner Peace? _

_"Nah, we get along fine when there are other emotions to balance it out. What's disturbing to me is the constant banging on the box because _you're_ ignoring them." _

_Oh, fine then. Let them out. I guess I can learn to deal with them. I can always put them back in the box if it becomes troublesome, right? _

_"Correct."_

"I hear the weather in Hokkaido is supposed to be nice this time of year." Kaoru's voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts.

"Excuse me?" Aoshi looked down at the pile of vegetables that he had unconsciously cut up into neat pieces. _How did she get from "being stupid" to "Hokkaido?" _

"According to Sou-chan, the weather in Hokkaido is very nice during the summer." She moved her pot off of the direct flame, setting it aside for later. "I made up the tempura batter, but you're going to have to be in charge of frying everything. The last time I tried, I almost burned down the kitchen."

Kaoru busily set herself to work preparing the vegetables and shrimp to be battered, leaving Aoshi to stare confusedly at a pan full of hot, spitting oil. "Kenshin said the trick is to slide the food into the oil, not drop it," she reassuringly. "Think you'll be okay, Aoshi-san?"

"Yes." _Kamiya is actually correct when she says I need a variety of goals. I do not need to seek Inner Peace anymore because I just had a long conversation with it. So, right now my goal is to (1) not burn down the kitchen, (2) not burn the food or myself with the oil, and (3) for everything I made to taste good. _

"It's almost time for everyone to come home." Kaoru handed him what appeared to be a small, circular, wire basket attached to a long wooden handle. "So I guess I should just say this bluntly." _Like she hasn't been blunt this entire afternoon? _

"The cruelest thing you can do to Misao-chan now is to continue to let her have hope if you have no intention of ever returning her feelings." _I never intended to hurt her. _"Dragging this out will only make the pain worse for everyone." _Well, lucky for her I decided to deal with those feelings. _"You've held yourself apart from everyone for so long that I don't really consider you family." _Ouch. _"Yet." _What?_ "If you decide to answer Misao-chan's feelings with your own, then…" _Then…? _

"I'd be proud to call you 'Onii-chan.'" Kaoru began dipping pieces from Aoshi's neat piles into the batter and handing it to him to fry, seemingly content to let him mull _that_ statement over in his head.

_"And we know exactly how powerful an ally Kamiya is when it comes to dealing with people." _Admiration said.

_"No one ever bothered to say anything like that before." _An odd feeling of warmth was spreading in his chest. Could this be…? _"She cares enough about you and Misao to go out on a limb like that without reservation." _It was the same feeling he occasionally got when he was with Misao, until he would consciously push it away. _"I'm not going back into the box again, boss. Your Evil Intentions are scary." _This was Happiness. 

_So Inner Peace let you out? Where is your friend Romantic Love? _

_"Misao is cute / Her eyebrows are delicate / Her toes so petite" _

_Oh. My. God. _

_"Hey boss, shall I write another haiku? They're so much easier to write than sonnets or limericks. They don't even have to rhyme!" _Obviously Romantic Love had been let out too. And it was a Misao fan.

_My sense of Romantic Love is a Shakespearean Basho. No wonder I kept it locked up for so long. _

_"I'm not going back into the box, either!" _Romantic Love yelled. _"You're going to have to tell Misao-chan how we feel. It had better be soon, too, or I'll bother Inner Peace until you do!" _

_I thought Inner Peace said that you got two got along. _

_"We do, _after_ I am confessed." _

_I'm blaming this all on Kamiya. _

"Kaoru-san, we're home! Where are you, anyway?" Misao's voice cut through the fog in Aoshi's head. "We have a surprise!" The muted sounds of Yahiko and Soujirou's voice drifted into the kitchen.

"I'd better go see what they brought." Kaoru said softly as she wiped her hands off. "Thank you for listening to me this afternoon, and I apologize again for all the rude things I said." When Aoshi took his attention off of the frying shrimp, he saw her chagrined expression. "Besides, Yahiko is going to freak out when he finds out I actually cooked something." She walked towards the door and was almost through it when Aoshi's quiet voice stopped her.

"Kamiya." She turned to look at him, an eyebrow raised in question. "Kaoru. Which do you prefer?"

"Kaoru, of course." Her smile turned teasing as she added mischievously, "Aoshi-niichan." He ignored that and returned to the bubbling oil, looking dubiously at the pile of food that remained for him to fry. "I'll get Sou-chan to come help you. Thanks again." She left with a little wave in search of her other family members.

_At least I understand why Himura likes her so much now. _

+++++

To be continued….!

+++++

**Author's Notes: (and there are a lot of them) **

**Tokonoma **– a special alcove in a Japanese house, usually attached to a guest room, where a flower arrangement or scroll is discreetly displayed.

**Ikebana** – flower arranging

**Wakame** – a special type of seaweed often served in miso soup

**Hachimaki** – a headband (I own one that says "Study Hard for the top!")

**Haori** – loose shirt/over jacket type thing usually worn over a kimono; often can be seen sporting slogans and worn during festivals nowadays

**Onii-chan **– affectionate term for "older brother"

**Basho **– famous samurai poet whose specialty was Haiku

#1 - I didn't mean for Shi-chan to be portrayed as being crazy, just getting back in touch with a part of himself that he usually chooses not to deal with. ; He spends so much time as Mr. Ice Man that I think his poor emotions are probably tired of being ignored. ^^; Hence the mental argument/discussion, which I personally think goes on all the time. I hope the way I wrote it makes sense to people. ^^; His OOC-ness is all in his head. I hope. ^_^;;

#2 – I'm sure everyone realizes that the speech patterns Kenshin uses in everyday conversation and the way he thinks of himself in his head are totally different. "Sessha" and "de gozaru" are all part of his subservient, archaic, Rurouni persona. "Ore" (the masculine "I") is how he thinks of himself in his head, and part of the more normal speech pattern he used when he was a Hitokiri.

#3 – A longish note on the different levels of love in Japanese language can be found at: http ://www.angelfire.com/ weird/sayokochan/sukiai.htm (copy, paste, take out spaces).

#4 – The end is in sight! Just out of curiosity, would there be any interest in a sequel? If so, who would you want Kaoru and Darling to terrify into joining the family next? I have some ideas, but I'd like to hear others. ^_^;;

#5 – I like stories where the little sister is able to beat up her big brother. ^^; Aoshi's Romantic Love looks like Shigure from Fruits Basket.

**Reader Response**: 

XP-DarkAngel - Sano-chan isn't simple... he just has different priorities. ^^; Um... Unless I decide to be really evil to Shi-chan (especially after this chapter), I don't think Soujirou is going to get a girlfriend. I just have this thing against original characters. ^^; 

Radi-chan - What is normal behavior for Kaoru? ^^; ::grin:: Thanks for your review!

Seien - Please look out for some WAFFy K&K moments next chapter. ^_^ One of the best? ::uber blush:: I don't think so, but thanks saying something so lovely! Thanks for your review! 

Chiruken - Shi-chan is mostly fixed now. ^_^ 

teh tarik - I love writing the meal scenes best. They just seem so wild all the time. ::cowers:: Sou-chan isn't broken! In fact, now that he has a support system, he's pretty good. ^_^;;

chris - "Devious bokken-wielding genki-girl?" i like that! i should try and work that in somewhere. 

Silver Goddess - did you know that "more more more" was one of the two songs that made me hate disco forever? in any case, here's "more." ^_^; thanks for your review!

Aqua Blue - :p I firmly believe that after Jinchuu, there ain't nothin' except DEATH that could break K&K apart. any jealously on Kenshin's part isn't because he's afraid of losing Kaoru, it's because he wants some of that lovin' too. ^^; and soujirou loves kaoru! just not in a Romantic Love sorta way. 

marstanuki - wai! i wrote more. thanks for the review.

Silver Rune - thanks for the review! Shi-chan and Sou-chan thank you.

Briar - i love the whole dynamic that kao and sou have going too. ^_^ thanks for your review!

- DANG! your name is like... "the reviewer former known as xxx"... neat! ^_^ sorry to disappoint, but your favorite pairings will not be appearing in this fic. alternate pairings abound in my next project. ^_^;

Cat H - i attempted more humor... ::sigh:: but then, it's *Shi-chan* so who knows how well that worked... Shi-chan basically fixed himself. kaoru just kicked him into doing it sooner. ^_^ whee.

Dragona - you *love* this fic? ::hugs:: can i keep you? damn. thanks for the compliment, and the review. ^_^ 

Dallisse - whee! thanks for the review. 

Star-Eyed Kal'enedral - EEP! here's more, here's more, please don't hurt me! ::cowers:: you *love* this fic? O.o; can i keep you? ::hugs:: thanks for the review. 


	10. Love Me Tender

**Patchwork Family** Chapter Ten – "Love Me Tender"

**Author:** sayochama

**Rating:** PG13 (for Sano's potty mouth)

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but a pile of pretty doujinshi and a burning love for Rurouni Kenshin. Please don't sue.

**Thoughts** are in _italics. _

++++++

"Kaoru-san, we're home! Where are you, anyway? We have a surprise!" Misao's voice could be clearly heard from the street as Kenshin and Sanosuke approached the dojo. Sanosuke had gone off to harass Katsu for a little while when Kenshin wanted to do some shopping for the dojo. When they met up again, Kenshin had a few packages that he refused to reveal the contents of.

"Everyone seems to have a surprise for Jou-chan tonight." Sanosuke mumbled around his fishbone. Feminine exclamations of excitement could now be heard, marking Kaoru's apparent reception of Misao's "surprise."

"So it seems." Kenshin hurried his steps, suddenly anxious to be home after being away all day. He came through the gate to see a small crowd of people outside the dojo. It looked like Megumi, Tae, and Tsubame were visiting that evening.

"I'm home!" he called out. Everyone turned to look at him, parting a bit to reveal Kaoru and Misao. At least he thought it was Misao, she had the same height and build, but the girl wearing the colorful yukata and done up hair bore little resemblance to the energetic ninja that he was used to.

"Oh, Kenshin, welcome home." Kaoru smiled and came forward to greet him. "You have really good timing. Would you mind helping Aoshi and Sou-chan finish the tempura?"

"Oro?" _I didn't know Aoshi could cook._

"Himura! Whatcha think? Does it suit me?" Misao bounced up behind Kaoru and spun around to show off her yukata. It was a dark pink color with a yellow rabbit and blue flower design.

"It's very nice, Misao-dono." _It's definitely her. _Misao grinned and flashed him a victory sign.

"At least let him put his things down before you put to him to work, you silly Raccoon." Megumi's sharp voice preceded her arrival. She was also dressed differently than normal. The red firework pattern on the navy blue yukata accented her pale complexion and the lip coloring she favored. "Here, let me help you with those Ken-san."

"No, no. There's no need. I can manage." Megumi looked slightly disappointed but then grinned flirtatiously.

"And how does _my_ yukata suit me, Ken-san?"

"You, um… look very nice too, Megumi-dono." _Please don't hit me. Please don't hit me. Please don't hit me. _Usually things went badly for him when he complemented Megumi, but a glance at Kaoru showed that Darling was still safely tucked away. In fact, if anything, Kaoru looked apologetic, instead of her normal annoyance at Megumi's antics.

"I'm so sorry Kenshin, I completely didn't notice you were carrying anything. I was just so excited about the Bon-odori tonight…"

"_Oh, _so that's why Megitsune and Weasel-san over here are all gussied up. I thought something strange was going on." Sano, who had sauntered up to the crowd around Kenshin at a more sedate pace, was the recipient of a kick to the head courtesy of Misao and a nasty twist of his ear from Megumi. "Ouch! What the hell was that for?"

"Why don't you try being nicer, Rooster head?"

"I was being nice, Megitsune!" _And they're off…_ Kenshin shook his head as Sano and Megumi began one of their famous arguments, most of which involved insults from the unflappable Megumi and a great deal of swearing from Sanosuke.

"Megumi-san is right, though, Kenshin. You must be tired after carrying all that stuff home from wherever you went. Why don't you let us help you?" Kenshin shook his head again.

"I'm fine, Kaoru-dono. I'll just go put these things in my room." _And keep one for tonight's Bon-odori. _Kaoru looked at him quietly for a few moments before smiling.

"I suppose with Sou-chan's help, Aoshi-san should have dinner ready very soon. They probably won't need you to supervise."

"That's nice. I'll go put these away then. Why don't you get everyone inside so we can eat and leave sooner?"

"I'll try."

+++++

Kaoru did manage to corral everyone into the dining room without much trouble, though she had to separate Sanosuke and Megumi so they weren't within arm's reach of each other. Megumi had a painful habit of pulling on appendages when she was angry, especially Sanosuke's, which tended to be improper behavior for a dinner table. She had just managed to get everyone settled in when Soujirou appeared with the first of several platters of tempura, all of which positively glittered with the promise of deliciousness. By comparison, her miso soup looked wretched and almost inedible.

_I guess this is the result when you put an obsessive perfectionist like Aoshi in charge of cooking. The food is afraid to taste or look bad. I _know_ my miso soup tastes good, but it just doesn't look very appetizing when compared to anyone else's. _Kaoru covertly sighed over her pot of soup as she served it, keeping quiet about its origin.

"Damn, that Iceman can cook tempura, but his miso sure needs work. It looks like a 6 year old cut up the ingredients." Sanosuke said as he jostled his bowl to get a better look at the contents.

"Yeah, you'd think Aoshi'd be better with a knife than this." Yahiko mumbled around a mouthful of potato as he pulled up two oddly shaped pieces of tofu with his chopsticks.

"Are you talking about the miso?" Soujirou had left and returned with the second platter of tempura in the space it took Yahiko to grab a piece of potato and eat it. It helped that the kitchen was just a short trip down the hall, but Soujirou was very quick. "Shinomori-san said that Kaoru-san made it." He delivered that with a bright smile, unaware of the chaos he was going to cause. "I'm looking forward to tasting it. I've never had her cooking before."

Everyone who had gotten a bowl of miso except Misao abruptly pushed it away. Tae and Tsubame were a bit more discreet about it, but their bowls still ended up as far away from them as politely possible.

"Hey Ugly, didn't we tell you not to go near the kitchen ever again?" Yahiko yelled. "When we dumped the last pot of miso you made, it was like salting the earth! Not even weeds grow there!" He pointed to a spot in the garden where, indeed, nothing seemed to be growing.

Even though she had expected that kind of reaction, Kaoru still couldn't help but have her feelings hurt. "Give it back then, if you aren't going to try it." Her reply was curt, though she didn't allow any expression beyond indifference onto her face. She looked away and began filling everyone's rice bowl. The atmosphere at the table darkened considerably. Yahiko abruptly realized that he had been tactless and blushed scarlet, though he didn't make any move to touch his bowl. Tsubame pinched him. He didn't move. She pinched him again. He glared at her. She glared right back. Stalemate.

"There's no need for that, Kaoru-dono. I'll take Yahiko's portion." Kenshin had caught Yahiko's exclamation as he came down the hallway and felt the sudden shift in Kaoru's ki as the child's words struck home. Tonight was supposed to be a fun and celebratory. He hadn't seen Aoshi yet, but he knew that Kaoru wouldn't have been preoccupied with the Bon-odori if her project with him hadn't turned out. She didn't deserve to be berated for her cooking, even if most of her efforts weren't terribly successful. "If you wouldn't mind passing it over here…" he said softly as he took his seat next to Kaoru, murmuring his thanks as he received it.

"I'll be right back with the last platter of tempura then, Kaoru-san, if you wouldn't mind getting a serving ready for me too." Soujirou grinned as he turned back towards the hallway that led towards the kitchen. If he "accidentally" kicked Yahiko on his way out he didn't notice, though Aoshi did comment on his somewhat fierce look as he picked up the final tray.

"What's wrong with everyone, anyway? I bet Kaoru-san worked really hard to make this miso soup for us and you're treating it like poison." Misao was genuinely confused. She had always assumed that Kaoru was simply too busy to bother with chores like cooking and that it suited her arrangement with Kenshin to simply let him take care of it. It had never occurred to her that the real reason was that she was a bad cook, even though Kaoru herself had admitted that it wasn't one of her strengths.

Megumi sighed, her voice lacking the normal sugar coated venom that usually accompanied her remarks about Kaoru's cooking. "Our Tanuki-chan usually burns water."

"I'm not that bad." Likewise, Kaoru's voice wasn't as heated as she defended her, admittedly limited, skills.

"Have you been practicing, Kaoru-chan?" It was Tae's natural inclination to soothe conflicts, in her restaurant or otherwise. She inched her own bowl closer again, deciding that she would eat it after all – but only if someone else tasted it before her and didn't turn green.

"Not for a few months." As soon as Kenshin had been able after his fight, he was up and doing the kitchen chores. The rest of the time Megumi, Tae, and even Sanosuke, had taken care of most of their needs.

"Oh, did you wait for us to get back before you started, Kaoru-san?" Soujirou came back bearing the final platter of food, followed closely by a tired looking Aoshi. "You and Shinomori-san did a wonderful job. Everything looks delicious." He carefully set the tray down before taking his seat beside Kenshin. "Itadakimasu." Everyone else chorused the familiar saying, though no one else besides Kenshin, Misao, and Aoshi made a move towards his or her food. The first thing they grabbed to eat was Kaoru's miso, the one dish everyone was dubious about.

_There's something familiar about this miso… _Kenshin thought distractedly. _Not just that it's miso, but it's a special recipe from someone…_ It tasted good too. He turned to smile at the still outwardly indifferent Kaoru. "It's delicious, Kaoru-dono." She relaxed enough to smile back.

"Yup! Super tasty, Kaoru-san." Misao held out her bowl. "Seconds, please." Sanosuke and Yahiko looked at her like she was crazy. No one ever wanted seconds of Kaoru's food. Kaoru and Misao exchanged grins as she refilled the bowl.

"It's excellent, Kaoru-san." Soujirou was smiling as he said it, though no one except Kaoru, Misao and Kenshin really believed him because he could smile through just about anything. That just left Aoshi.

"It's good." Aoshi's quiet, steady voice decided everyone else. If Mr. Iceman thought that it was good, then it was good. He didn't lie and he didn't care about protecting anyone's feelings as far as they knew, unlike the other three. "Kaoru." That part of his comment made Kenshin's head shoot up. _Since when did Aoshi refer to Kaoru so familiarly? What exactly did she do to him? _

"Thank you, everyone." Kaoru smiled her "I-told-you-so" smile, which broke the tension in the room. Their normal routine was restored, and Yahiko even demanded to have his share of Kaoru's miso soup returned now that he was sure he wasn't going to die after eating it. If Kenshin hadn't been sitting next to her, or watching her so closely, he would have missed her whispered, "Thank you, Aoshi" in the chaos that was mealtime at the Kamiya Dojo.

Suddenly Kenshin knew everything was going to be okay within this group of people who had become his family. Kaoru had successfully reminded Aoshi of his priorities, Soujirou felt comfortable enough with them to make it seem like he had been there forever, and he himself had finally gotten his act together after his talk with Sano. The Bon-odori would be the perfect opportunity to settle things between himself and Kaoru formally. He could hardly wait.

++++++

Clean up was accomplished and they were ready to go in record time as everyone pitched in to help. Aoshi consented to go to the Bon-odori with them, which made Misao ecstatically happy. The trip to the Bon-odori was loud and filled with excitement. The girls teased each other about who could outdo who and it seemed like this was going to be a night of fun.

When they finally arrived the girls wasted no time in joining the big group dances. Their enthusiasm was infectious and soon all of the boys except Aoshi were out dancing too. Sanosuke, surprisingly enough, was actually very skillful. Kenshin, Yahiko, and Soujirou all managed to muddle through without too much trouble, though they escaped back to the sidelines as soon as they were able to Sanosuke's loud heckling.

Misao eventually managed to haul Aoshi out onto the field to join in the miner's dance, which was the simplest of the dances. For all of his grace when he was fighting, he looked uncomfortable as he tried to follow the steps and hand movements of the unfamiliar dance. She fell back beside him and demonstrated what they were supposed to do. By the end of the song Aoshi had most of the movements down, but his timing was still a little off. He didn't look quite as ridiculous as he did before though, and that's all he really wanted. Aoshi went back to the sidelines content with fulfilling his obligation.

"Are you having a good time, Aoshi?" Kenshin asked softly. Misao had, mercifully, left him alone in favor of cheerfully terrorizing Soujirou and Yahiko, who were drug kicking and screaming back onto the field.

"Aa." It wasn't said with as much enthusiasm as the average person would use, but he knew that Aoshi was actually in a very pleasant mood.

"I didn't know you could cook." Kenshin decided to attempt a conversation while he searched for Kaoru in the crowd. The last time he had seen her, she had been with Megumi in one of the lines near the platform in the center of the field.

"Neither did I." Aoshi was also watching the field, though he was focused on Misao as she made fun of the boys. He felt the side of his mouth kick up in a half smile before he was able to smooth out his expression again.

"Then why did Kaoru…?" He spared Aoshi a sidelong glance before he spotted Kaoru being lead up onto the center platform with Tsubame and Megumi.

"I couldn't escape." Tae had joined Misao as they yelled encouragement to their friends, who were going to be the leaders.

"Excuse me?" Kenshin was distracted as he watched Kaoru start the graceful steps of the dance, though Aoshi's response was enough to snap him back into reality. 

"The kitchen." Aoshi's responses generally required a bit of logical thinking before they made sense. It took Kenshin a few seconds to puzzle out the two comments. _Aoshi couldn't escape the kitchen. The kitchen has one door. If Kaoru hauled him into the kitchen, then she would have put herself between Aoshi and the door. He wouldn't hurt her, so he would've been a captive audience. To keep him from zoning out while she was talking to him, she put him to work. _He could only shake his head at her devious cleverness.

"Well, it seems that you two worked things out for the better in the end."

"Yes."

The two settled back into a mutual silence as they waited for the dance to end, enjoying watching how graceful the girls were. Misao, Tae, and Soujirou came back first, saying that Sanosuke and Yahiko had gone to escort their other friends from the platform. Kaoru and the others arrived a few minutes later, looking tired but excited.

"Damn, I'm beat. Why don't we find a place a sit down for a while?" Sanosuke grumbled as he patted his pockets looking for a fishbone to chew on.

"I want to go look at the market stalls!" Misao said enthusiastically. Several vendors had set up booths full of food, games, and small wares. She had been eyeing them ever since they arrived.  
  


"I'll go with you." Everyone turned to look at Aoshi, who blinked a few times himself at what had just come out of his mouth.

"Really?" Misao's eyes were full of fragile hope, like she was afraid that she misheard, which immediately made Aoshi feel guilty for had badly he treated her in the past.

"Aa." He wasn't sure how it was possible, but Misao looked even happier than she had when they set off from the dojo. Aoshi resolved to do things that would make her smile like that more often. It did funny, but nice, things to his insides.

"I kind of wanted to go up to the shrine." Kaoru was feeling blessed with all the good things that had been happening lately and wanted to properly thank the gods for it. The Bon-odori was being held at the base of a hill of a shrine, so this was the perfect opportunity.

"Would you mind if I accompanied you?" Kenshin wasn't going to let this chance slip away like so many others. Kaoru shook her head to show she definitely didn't mind.

"Maybe I should go up t— ouch!" Tae stepped on his toes before Soujirou could finish, frantically shaking her head "No," at the kappa.

"Are you okay, Sou-chan?" Kaoru looked at him worriedly, while he could see Tae glaring daggers at him from the corner of his eye. _I guess this means I shouldn't go with them._

"I'm fine. I think I'll go see if I can find something to eat." He absently rubbed his foot against his leg to try and get rid of the sting. "Would you like me to get you something?"

"I'm still full from dinner, but thanks for offering."

Eventually it was decided that Misao, Aoshi, Soujirou, Tsubame, and Yahiko would go to the mini market, while Tae, Sanosuke, and Megumi would find a place to sit and relax, and Kaoru and Kenshin would visit the shrine at the top of the hill. They promised to meet back in an hour.

++++

The walk up the stairs to the top of the hill was accomplished in semi silence. There was a slight tenseness in the atmosphere between them, as if both yearned to take the next step but were unsure about how to do it. For all of Kaoru's confidence when it came to dealing with other people, Kenshin was the one person she didn't know how to handle all the time. They had spent the last few months dancing around the issue of their relationship, but things had begun to speed up in the course of a few days.

There were several lanterns to light the way up the stairs, as well as the grounds of the shrine. Several other couples had had the same idea of visiting the shrine, the quiet and solitude a welcome reprieve from the boisterousness of the Bon-odori below, and were milling around quietly talking or admiring the view. Kaoru immediately made her way over to the collection box with the bell hanging over it, following the ritual after she threw in a few coins.

_Thank you for sending these people to me. I wish that this happiness I've found with everyone lasts forever. _

Kenshin followed Kaoru a few steps behind and repeated her actions himself.

_I know I don't deserve it, but please let me make Kaoru happy. _

"The stars look so beautiful from here." Kenshin turned slightly to see Kaoru gazing up into the sky. "Tokyo's sky is my favorite," she said softly, "because it means that I'm home."

"Kaoru…" She turned this time, the light from the lanterns giving her face an extra softness. "Would you like to sit down somewhere? I want to talk to you about something…" When she nodded, he led her off to a bench he had spotted earlier that overlooked the stairs and festival below.

"What would you like to talk to me about, Kenshin?" Kaoru asked after a few minutes had passed. She didn't look at him, instead preferring to look out over the city and up at the stars. The quiet rustle of fabric and paper answered her as she felt Kenshin take her hand and put something in it.

"Open it." Kaoru looked down at the package in her hand. It was soft and warm from where Kenshin had been carrying it.

"Are you sure?" She didn't want to be rude, but she also wanted to know what was inside.

"Yes." That was all she needed to hear. Kaoru carefully, but quickly, opened up the paper and took out a new hair ribbon and a matching handbag. She got up and moved closer to the light to get a better look at the design, which turned out to be white cherry blossoms on a blue background. Kenshin stood also, but made no move to go closer to her.

"Oh Kenshin, they're beautiful." She threw herself at Kenshin, hugging him for all she was worth. "Thank you." He slowly put his arms around her and hugged her back, resting his chin on her hair.

"I'm sorry I couldn't buy you a ring." He pitched his voice so only Kaoru could hear it. "I wanted to, but…"

"Huh…?" Kaoru pulled away from him enough to look up into his face, and blushed at the expression she found. Kenshin rarely showed his true emotions, and this was one of those times. There was just enough light that she could see his intensity and love for her naked on his face. "Are you…"

"Kaoru, I don't know if I'll ever be able to provide for you properly. I cause you constant worry because of my need for atonement that sends me back to the battlefield again and again. I've done so many terrible things in my life that I don't deserve to even be near someone as wonderful as you, but I just can't leave you.

"I know I'm probably cursing you to a life of a few small happiness' mixed with a lot of pain by even asking this yet… I must.

"These past years with you taught me how to live again. You've taught me to love and sincerely care about people again. I hate being the reason you are put into danger so much because I can't guarantee I can protect you. But above all, I just can't live without you." Kaoru could feel the tears running down her cheeks as she waited for Kenshin to finish. She had several comments of her own to make, but Kaoru knew it had taken a long time for Kenshin to finally say anything. To interrupt him now would be foolish.

"I overheard a little of your conversation with Misao-dono last night. All of those things you said about yourself aren't true. And I would be honored if you would consent to marry me." Kaoru tears were flowing freely, but she managed to get a hold on them just long enough to ask some questions of her own.

"You don't mind my temper?"

"You're very spirited."

"And my cooking?"

"You make excellent miso soup."

"I don't like cleaning."

"Aren't you lucky that I do?"

"I beat you up with Darling all the time."

"It's your skill with a sword that puts food on our table."

"Do you love me?"

"With everything that I am." Kaoru felt her insides melt like overcooked tofu.

"Me too."

"Will you marry this unworthy one?"

"Of course." Kenshin smiled down at her before tipping her face up for a kiss.

"I love you."

+++++

The others were waiting for them as they descended the hill, a little later than they originally intended. "Hey Kenshin, is there a reason for that big, doofy grin on your face, or has Jou-chan finally hit you upside the head one too many times?" Sanosuke smirked at the redhead's embarrassed start before Kaoru smacked him with Darling.

"For your information Sanosuke, Kenshin and I are getting married." _Finally. _

This announcement stopped everyone in his or her tracks. They had been waiting for this for months, and now that it was finally going to happen they weren't sure quite how to act. Shocked silence prevailed for a few moments as the information sunk in before the females of the group converged on Kaoru and began dragging her away, chattering about all of the plans they would have to make. Tae and Misao were especially excited, Tae because she had been planning the wedding ever since Kaoru's eighteenth birthday and Misao because she loved happy events. Megumi began to twitter something about "having The Talk" with Kaoru, fox ears out and playfully extended. Even Tsubame was acting less shy then usual, offering her congratulations more enthusiastically than normal. 

The boys weren't left out of their congratulations either. They watched the girls trot down the road for a few minutes before Sanosuke and Yahiko pounded Kenshin on the back hard enough to send him stumbling forward a few steps, saying things like "It took you long enough." Aoshi unbent himself long enough to offer a pleased smile, which for him meant pulling the corners of his mouth up more than five millimeters, and a soft "Be happy."

Soujirou was just as happy as Sanosuke and Yahiko, though he was a bit more restrained about showing it. His "Congratulations, Himura-san," was heartfelt and Kenshin could feel his sincerity. It was as powerful as anything his other friends were doing.

The walk back to the dojo was as boisterous as the one leaving it, though for a different reason. It was thankfully uneventful as the two groups began making plans for the future, up until they came within sight of the dojo. The girls, who had a few minute head start back from the Bon-odori had stopped in the middle of the road and were waiting in the middle of the road for the boys to catch up. Kenshin and the others hurried, curious as to why the girls would act so strangely, and saw what had them stopped. A large carriage was parked in front of the dojo gate, though it was too dark to make out a seal if one was on the door.

+++++

Kaoru was beginning to feel that sense of dread that always accompanied unexpected visits from carriages. _Carriages = rich people. Rich people = politicians. Politicians = Meiji government officials. Meiji government officials = people who take the men I love away. _She could feel her friends' unease begin to mirror her own as they waited for the boys to catch up. _Why is it that just as we begin to get settled and happy, some sort of emergency comes up that the damn government feels the need to come knock on our door? Can't they take care of themselves? _Anger began to overpower her uneasiness. _If they think they can ruin my happiness tonight, they have another thing coming._

"Something's wrong, isn't it Kaoru-san?" Tsubame sounded a bit scared and nervous as the sounds of Kenshin's scuffling footsteps quickly approached. Kaoru patted her shoulder comfortingly.

"Stay with Yahiko, Tsubame-chan." Tsubame nodded to show she understood, taking Yahiko's hand as the other half of their group joined them.

+++++

"Kaoru-dono…?" Kenshin said softly, eyeing Kaoru's ramrod straight back with concern. When she turned to face him she had Darling in her hand and a determined expression on her face.

"Let's go home, Kenshin." He felt sorry for whoever was waiting for them in the carriage. He had a feeling that they wouldn't escape the dojo unscathed, especially if they wanted him to go fight for them. Kenshin would, of course, ultimately accept the task that they wanted to assign him, but the part of him that was emotional secretly delighted that Kaoru loved him enough to be ready to make them hurt for it. Not that he would let her do something so irrational or stupid, but he appreciated the sentiment. Kaoru grabbed his hand and marched determinedly towards their home, trusting that her family would be right behind them. They were.

++++++

"Kaoru-san would make an incredible general, don't you think Aoshi-sama?" Misao whispered as they followed behind the pair.

"Yes." Aoshi put an arm around her shoulders as they walked, drawing her closer into his side as his mind began to formulate possible courses of action. He wanted Misao out of the way so Himura and Kaoru could take of the unexpected visitor without her unneeded interference. Years of training and experience had taught him that it was best to wait and time such actions for maximum benefit. Ninja were, after all, meant to support the main fighting force, not be a part of it.

It also helped that he actually had the benefit of feelings to enjoy holding Misao close, unselfish motivations aside.

_As far as I know, Himura and Seta are the only ones the police or government would be interested in. If it's not one, it has to be the other. Or both. _He allowed a coldness to enter his expression. _Sagara is more hindrance than help in this sort of situation. _Aoshi glanced at the blushing girl at his side, and the girl he was following. _So if it comes to it, I'll have to be the one to take care of things. Again... _He mentally sighed. …_because Himura and Seta certainly won't help themselves._

+++++

The door to the carriage swung open as they finally reached the gate to the dojo, allowing the group to see who their visitors were.

"Good evening, Himura-kun." The bearded man in the carriage exuded an aura of power. Kaoru had ceased to be impressed by government officials long before, though, so the effect was lost on her. It chafed her pride that her presence could be so casually dismissed. Kenshin must have felt her displeasure because he discreetly squeezed her hand. 

"Good evening, Yamagata-dono, Chief Uramura." Kenshin stepped forward and bowed his head respectfully towards the men, but didn't release Kaoru's hand. "To what do we owe the pleasure of your company tonight?" He asked softly, still being as polite as possible.

"Perhaps we could continue this conversation inside?" Yamagata made a gesture towards the dojo. "It would be better if it were conducted in private." His subtle emphasis on the last word made Kaoru bristle internally again, but she managed to keep her outward composure.

"If you don't mind waiting a few more minutes we'll go and open up the house for you." Kaoru's voice was pleasant, helpful even, but there was steel in it that told the War Minister that he was going to wait whether he wanted to or not. Yamagata vaguely wondered what the girl would be capable of under different circumstances and how he could use those skills.

"Take as much time as you need, Kamiya-san. There's no rush." Chief Uramura finally decided to join the conversation, sensing the tension. He had always been on friendly terms with the occupants of the dojo, especially since the crime rate in that particular section of town had fallen dramatically since Kenshin had come to stay. Kaoru smiled her thanks as she pulled Kenshin away, allowing space for the two men to get out of the carriage. Kenshin unlocked the gate and everyone followed the two of them as they went about lighting lanterns and reconfiguring rooms.

+++++

Soujirou was nervous. He had avoided being harassed by the government by being a Rurouni for the past months, not staying in one place long enough to be tracked down and caught. When he had visited Anji in his prison in Hokkaido, he had told him that the government had offered deals to all of the Juppon Gatana who were interested. Anji had not been, instead choosing to serve a prison sentence, but he had warned the younger man about the dangers of being caught.

"You're the one they're most interested in." He had said in his calm voice. "Chou, who works for the police now, told them about your skills. They asked me, and probably the others, about you as well. It bothers them that you are running around free, when they can see a use for your talents."

Apparently Kenshin knew the politician, not that it made him feel any better. He didn't want to cause any trouble for his newfound family and friends, but he also didn't want to get caught and sent to prison either. He was in a pickle. Soujirou felt a hand on his shoulder as the girls finished setting up the dining room as a makeshift conference area.

"If I tell you, run." Aoshi slipped something into his hand before moving away. "Show that to any Oniwabanshu and they'll help you." Soujirou quickly dropped the something into his sleeve so he wouldn't loose it. Kaoru and Kenshin were inviting their guests inside and everyone was trooping in to sit down too. The room opened up onto the porch, which was where Soujirou chose to sit, next to Sanosuke, who was leaning against his post, Yahiko, Tsubame, and Tae. He didn't want to run, but if it came to that he'd rather have a clear path of escape.

++++

Yamagata looked displeased at how everyone had decided to include him or herself in the conversation. "Perhaps I could talk to Himura-kun alone? This really only involves him, after all."

"I'm afraid that's not correct, Mr. Minister." Megumi said, throwing her hair over her shoulder in an act of practiced indifference. She was tired of being the one always left behind or in the dark about what was going on, especially when she was the one everyone called to fix things after the proverbial shit had hit the fan. As much as she enjoyed taunting Kaoru, Megumi had taken the route of protective older sister after coming to terms with the fact that Kenshin would never love her the way she wanted him to. She loved them both now in a familial way, had that affection returned, and was now determined to protect the fragile happiness that they were building together. "That may been the way it was in the past, but it's not that way anymore."

"Excuse me?"

"What the lady is trying to say is if you want to mess with one of us, you get to mess with all of us." Sanosuke's tone was belligerent and insulting, but his words were still semi-civil. "If you have something to say, say it to all of us and save us the trouble of beating it out of him later." To Megumi, Sanosuke was beginning to look mighty attractive.

"Himura-kun?" Yamagata turned to look at Kenshin who remained outwardly calm.

"They stay." He said firmly, his tone polite. "I would only tell them everything later. It will save me some trouble."

Yamagata looked faintly annoyed before he cleared his throat. "If that's the case then…"

"It is."

"Are you sure you don't want a post in the military?"

"You ask every time I see you and my answer is always the same. I respectfully decline." 

Yamagata sighed. "I keep hoping you will change your mind."

"I'm not interested in such a life. If there is a great need for my presence I will come, but I would prefer to live here in peace."

"That's part of the reason I'm here tonight." Kaoru could feel her stomach clench in sudden fear. _They want to take him away again. _Kenshin, who had resumed holding her hand when they had sat down, rubbed his thumb over her knuckles in a soothing gesture underneath the table. They waited for Yamagata to continue, the tension level in the room climbing quickly. "A little over a year ago, we called upon you to defeat Shishio Makoto and stop him from taking over our country.

"Information has reached us that you might know the whereabouts of the final member of his personal guard… the Juppon Gatana was it? We would be very interested if you did possess such knowledge about the Tenken."

Kenshin was in a quandary. He was loyal to the government that he had helped put into power, but he also did not want to let anything happen to his friend. His years of perfecting his blankly pleasant Rurouni face were the only thing that saved him from giving anything away.

"The Tenken is a myth." Kaoru said softly, taking up Kenshin's slack. "He doesn't exist."

"I'm afraid I'll have to disagree Kamiya-san. At least six people have verified his existence to us, and we are very interested in him. We've been looking for a long time."

"Can you really trust those people that gave you that information?" Yamagata raised an eyebrow at her continued impertinence.

"As much as any other." 

"Looking for the Tenken is like looking for the Battousai." _Hiding in plain sight, buried beneath a layer of guilt so thick it's a wonder they have room for any other emotions in their heart. _

"Do you know anything about him, Kamiya-san? Have you met him?" Yamagata narrowed his eyes at the girl sitting before him looking serene and confident, after ascertaining that he hadn't come for Kenshin after all. He could tell that she knew something, but he could also sense the absolute truth in everything she said. She was amazingly easy to read.

"I only know about the Tenken from what Kenshin has told me. I've never met him." _Which is true. I met Soujirou, not the Tenken. _The statesmen stared at her, assessing his options. The group seemed content enough to let her be their spokesperson, but he also had an idea of how important the girl had become to Himura. If he threatened her, perhaps he could provoke a response from the others.

"Withholding information is considered a crime, Kamiya-san. I could have Uramura-kun here arrest you for interfering with an investigation." He had barely finished before the group of people around him erupted into speech. Uramura was protesting putting such an upstanding citizen into jail over a trifle, while the spike-haired duo was spewing curses at him as fast as they could think of them. The reaction he provoked was the one he wanted, though he suddenly realized how dangerous that action was when he looked across the table at Kenshin. The younger man's expression was as close to the Battousai's as he'd ever seen since the war, and he was clearly not happy that his woman was being threatened. The expression clearly said, "Threaten me all you want, but she's off limits." Well, he couldn't take his words back now.

"Stop!" The young man he had seen, and dismissed, when he had arrived was standing in the doorway, shaking with anger. Everyone stopped talking to listen. "Kaoru-san hasn't done anything wrong!"

"Sou-chan…" Kaoru looked up at him, amazed to see such a violent emotion on his face.

"So you're the Tenken?" Yamagata stood.

"I don't use that name. I'm Seta Soujirou." His face dropped back into a smile, though it wasn't quite as pleasant as normal. "And I was told that you offered deals to my fellow members of the Juppon Gatana, or those that would take them. What are your intentions for me?"

"We'll take you back to the station and discuss it there."

"I would prefer to discuss it here."

"Then we'll have to arrest you." Yamagata blinked and suddenly Soujirou wasn't where he had been. There was a faint tap-tap of feet on the tatami.

"What makes you think you can catch me?" Soujirou whispered from behind him before he reappeared behind Kaoru and Kenshin. "Discuss it here, or not at all." He wasn't even winded. Everyone else was suitably impressed with his speed, except for Kenshin and Aoshi who had seen it often enough before. Sanosuke was still impressed.

Yamagata knew in that instant he heard those words that if the young man had possessed a weapon, he would have been very dead. There was no way they could catch him unless he wanted to be caught, much like Kenshin. He wanted Soujirou very badly. There were many uses for speed and skill like that in the military. Yamagata made a tactical retreat.

"We want you to enter the military secret service."

"You want me to become an assassin, this time for the Meiji government?"

"Yes."

"Haven't you and your government ruined enough lives like that, Yamagata-san!" Misao couldn't hold herself back anymore, despite Aoshi's calming presence. "Himura is crazy with guilt, Shishio just plain went crazy, and now you want to destroy the mind of another man? Isn't having that on your conscience enough?"

"Who are you, little girl?" Uramura tried, in vain, to warn the minister about her identity but he really wasn't interested in him at the moment.

"I'll have you know that I'm Makimachi Misao, leader of the Oniwabanshu!"

"Have the Oniwabanshu fallen so far as to employ children now?"

"I'm eighteen!" Aoshi had to physically restrain her from trying to bite the old man's head off.

"I afraid I'll have to decline your offer, Yamagata-san. I'm not interested in killing people anymore."

"Then I'm afraid we'll have to arrest you, in any way possible. You're too dangerous to be loose in the country." Soujirou regained his old pleasant smile and began tapping his foot on the floor. 

"Yamagata-dono, perhaps there is another option for Soujirou." Kenshin stood, drawing Kaoru up with him, partially to mask Soujirou's movements and partially because he hated being talked down to, especially when he was so short to begin with. Yamagata refocused his attention on Kenshin, who still looked rather peeved.

"And that would be?"

"Offer Sou-chan the same deal you offered Kenshin. He'll come fight for you if it's an emergency, but the rest of the time he'll live here with us where we can keep an eye on him."

"And you would personally take responsibility for him?"

"What better place for him to be then in the house of the man who defeated him? Sou-chan is part of our family now, and we're keeping him. I'll happily take responsibility for his actions."

"As would I, Yamagata-dono."

"We all would, you conscience-less freak!" Misao couldn't shake her fist like she wanted to, but Yahiko did it for her with his shouted, "YEAH!" She decided to do something nice for him later.

"Like I said, man, you mess with one of us, you mess with all of us." Sanosuke spit out into the yard. "So what's it gonna be?" The rest of those who were seated stood, to show that they were united in their resolve. He was impressed by their little display, as well as being in the same room as several of the best fighters in the country. It wasn't such a bad situation either, considering that if he remained on good terms with the occupants of the dojo he would have at his disposal an amazing fighting force.

"Uramura-kun will check up on you often, Seta. No extended trips without clearance. If even the slightest rumor reaches me about your character or activities, I will bring the full force of the military down upon you and crush you like a bug." He turned the force of his gaze to Kaoru and Kenshin. "Kamiya-san, Himura-kun, you will take complete responsibility if something should happen. I will keep you to your word. Don't forget."

"We won't, Yamagata-dono." Yamagata nodded and turned to go.

"And Kamiya-san?"

"Yes?"

"Would _you_ be interested in joining the military?"

"No, thank you."

"Well, it was worth a try. I'll be in touch." He left, Chief Uramura right behind him, with a slight nod of his head. They heard the carriage start moving a few minutes later and everyone let out a sigh of relief they didn't know they were holding in.

Kaoru turned to Soujirou with a bright smile on her face. "Isn't that great, Sou-chan? You can stay with us now!"

"Thank you for defending me, everyone. I've done some bad things but…"

"It's as Kaoru-dono says, Soujirou. As a family we take responsibility for each other's actions. It's a burden we all bear happily." Soujirou smiled happily and nodded his understanding.

"I wonder if this means you'll have to let Uramura-san know if you want to come visit us in Kyoto." Misao said as she came over, Aoshi finally releasing her. "How stupid! You just can't pick up and go. No surprises or anything."

"You're the only one who likes surprising people like that, Weasel girl." Yahiko said from the porch. He got ready to run, only to have Misao shrug in agreement.

"Tsubame and I had better head back to the Akebeko soon." Tae said. "Thanks for going to the Bon-odori tonight with us." That was everyone's cue to start getting ready to go. Things became chaotic again but Kaoru held herself apart for a few minutes to look at all of the people that were so important to her.

We all have our own problems, but when it really matters we're there for each other. It doesn't matter that we aren't related by blood, we love each other and that's what counts.

Kenshin came up and put an arm around her as they waved goodbye to their friends who were going home for the night. They would show up tomorrow, bright and early, but for now things were quiet again. Kaoru had the future to look forward to with the man she loved. She couldn't wait. 

The End.

+++++

Author's Notes, Reviewer Response, and a teaser for the sequel are all on the next chapter! This file was getting long enough without all of that. 


	11. Notes, Responses, & Teaser

**Author's Notes: **

**Bon-odori** – a mini festival where the focus is on group folk dances

#1 – Poor Yahiko. He takes so much abuse. I should really be nicer to him.

#2 - Kaoru's Miso isn't poisonous because she got tons of practice cooking for Enishi, who actually told her what was wrong with it. Unfortunately, it's the only thing she can cook without the possibility of property or health damage.

#3 – I realize that I made Yamagata waaaaay OOC, but all I wanted was a Meiji government official who wasn't Saitou, and his was the first name that I remembered.

#4 – Sorry this chapter took so long to come out, but real life has a tendency to get in the way sometimes. I was also having separation anxiety with this baby of mine, even though I wanted to finish it. Plus, I realized that I had originally planned the fic to be more Sou-chan-centric, so I tried to address that too.

#5- A big, huge, monstrous, glorious, "THANK YOU" to all of the people who took the time to review, and even to those who just read this story. I really appreciated all of the nice things everyone said, praise and criticisms alike. Not too bad for a first story, huh?

#6 – Look forward to a sequel. A little teaser is beneath the reviewer responses!

-- If you would like me to respond to your review for this chapter, please include your email addy or say "please write me" or something. ^_^;; 

**Reviewer Response **

Star-Eyed Kal'enedral - ::wants a Shi-chan plushie:: I like *my* Aoshi better than canon!Aoshi. ^_^; 

LadyChrisA - Shi-chan began to grow on me. Unfortunately, I didn't include his lovely emotions this time. Oh wells.

Eikou - I know Shi-chan isn't crazy. ^^; I just didn't want anyone to think so cuz he heard voices....

Lord Cirenmas - Whee! Thanks

SSB - Praise! Praise! Whee! Thanks. ^_^ That's one vote for Saitou...

Jen - Kaoru-chan rules. ^_^ Thanks for the review!

Chiruken - That's two votes for Saitou. ^_^ ::super huggles:: Thanks for reviewing every chapter! I always looked forward to your nice, happy notes. ^_^ I have to go watch Bob the builder now...

Silver Goddess - This is the end of this one, hon. ^_^; Thanks for the review!

Silver Rune - Yay for Shi-chan, his emotions, and a sequel. ^_^ Thanks!

babyg2988 - You "love it very much?" ::clings:: Can I keep you? You're good for my self esteem. 

Dallisse - Everyone likes Aoshi's emotions except Shi-chan himself. ^_^;

marstanuki - "A masterpiece?" ::super clings:: Can I keep you too? Kaoru is the one character that I'm pretty sure of my characterization for. ^_^;; Thanks for the review!

AngelOkibi - You would? Look below for a teaser then!

Mary - I didn't intend to put any romantic interest between Soujrou and Kaoru at all. ^^; I'm one of those who will, unless there is some sort of Insidious Plot Device, always put Ken and Kaoru together. ^_^

mystic wolf - Delurking is a good thing! I must follow your example and do it more often. ^_- Can I keep you as well? LOL! I love Hiko-sama, but I worry about writing him all weird....

Cat H - Thanks for reviewing every chappie. ^_^ Whee! A vote for Saitou AND Hiko-sama. You rule. I will do my utmost to terrorize them both. 

chris - Shi-chan in a frilly apron ranks up there with Shi-chan as Elvis as my favorite images of him. I really wish I was better at fanart. I don't know how long Saitou would put up with being chased around before Kenshin and Sou-chan would have to beat him up. ^^; It's a great idea though.

Lilfrozenfire - Don't feel bad, I'm just happy you took the time to read it. ^_^ Borrowing Darling and beating me with it is counter-productive, as my wrists and fingers ache from typing the final chapter (which is SEVENTEEN pages long, typed mostly in three marathon sittings). Sou-chan and Shi-niichan wouldn't be happy with you either. ^_^ I'm glad I made you laugh though. It makes me happy that my odd humor isn't weirding people out.

Seien - Shi-chan is very deep. ^_^; I tried to include more K&K waff, but Aoshi/Misao WAFF will mostly have to wait for the sequel. whee~!

whyndancer - Another delurked reviewer? Damn, Shi-chan's emotions are like little nets that convince people to hit the little review button. ::uber hugs:: You love it, you love me? ::uber uber hugs:: Can I keep you too? 

XP-DarkAngel - She did! Kaoru's super neat. Thanks!

Dragona - Hear that, boys, you have another fan! ::Admiration, Inner Peace, and Romantic Love all appear:: Thank you!

LunaAngel - Shi-chan grew on me, because I can control his emotions. ^_^ But yes, in most cases I do in fact prefer Sou-chan (who shines in the this glorious world of fanfiction).

Sinnymun - ::steals witchy hat:: Mine! Mwahahaha. ^_^;; thanks for the review, hope I didn't disappoint with the K/K WAFF. ^.^;; Shi-chan's emotion strike again!

yume - ::uber hugs:: I'm keeping you. I'm not going to ask. ^_^;; thanks for the review!

tin - Yeah, having Soujirou pass out wasn't one of my more brilliant ideas. ^^; I hope you continued long enough to read this! Mwa! 

**Teaser for "Adding For Good Measure"**

++++

Yumi stiffened slightly against Shishio's chest as they watched over the battlefield in the bowels of Hell. Their conquest of Hell was going well, thanks to Houji's incredible organization skills and Shishio's charisma. The whispering voice she heard in her head belonged to an unknown woman, one who was visiting her "grave." 

You two are probably outraged that Himura Kenshin's wife is visiting, but it was important to Sou-chan so I came. I know I wanted you to burn in Hell for all eternity for what you did to us, and I'm not sorry about that, but it's not like I can punish you now. Knowing you, you're probably trying to take over Hell, or something equally complicated. I wish you luck in that endeavor, but you can't have Soujirou. I'm keeping him; don't even think about trying to get him back.

"What's wrong, Yumi?" Shishio looked down at his woman, eyebrow raised beneath his bandages. She had always been more sensitive to happenings above ground, lingering worries keeping her attuned to what went on. That sort of thing didn't interest him anymore. He had more important things, like his conquest of Hell, to think about. Eventually all of his old enemies would end up in Hell with him anyway, and when they did they were going to be in for a nasty surprise. Yumi relaxed against him again as the voice faded away. 

"Battousai's woman came to visit us. She said that she wishes us luck on our conquest, and that the boy won't be joining us in his afterlife." 

"So Soujirou decided upon the path of my sempai, huh? Well, we don't need him anyway. We have plenty of demons that are just as powerful." He smirked as he walked towards the battlefield, Yumi on his arm and his sword drawn. "Besides, there's no such thing as a fifteen minute limit down here. I'm already dead." 

+++++ 


End file.
